La Paloma vinyl

Way before the world had fallen in love with the decidedly mind-altering riffs and rhythms of "Geht's Nocht", Roman Flugel was making a name for himself under the Roman IV pseudonym. It was way back in 1995 that he made his debut with "Altes Testament", a classic chunk of Detroit-influenced tech-house that was only the second release on Playhouse. A second 12" followed - featuring the brilliant "Green Tea" - but then little else from Flugel's Roman IV moniker. This new four-tracker for Running Back, then, promises to be something of a treat. In many ways, the German label is the perfect home for Flugel's Roman IV exploits. Famed for releasing long, loopy deep and tech-house epics - think Mark E, Move D and Radio Slave - Running Back will no doubt have been delighted to secure the services of their big-hitting countryman. "La Paloma", then, promises much - and delivers. The title track itself is a hypnotic delight - a ten-minute epic that works all-manner of barely-audible samples (distant bells, jazz samples, crackly pianos) into a weighty, late night tech-house groove. But there's plenty more to enjoy, too. The decidedly trippy "Lucy" wraps dubbed-out chords around a relentless subterranean bassline, while "Sa Celenta" takes a leaf out of Mark E's book by focusing the action around a lazy disco loop and bassline. Welcome back, Roman.

Flori, Jose Belo, GummiHz, The Revenge, Siimo, Juno Recommends Minimal Tech, Richard Zepezauer (RZ-1), James Johnston (No Matter What), Manuel Tur, DJ ROCCA, Javier Logares, Manuel Sahagun