Deep House Recommendations February 2016

Review: Hans Peeman (Junktion) and Daniel Leseman's Outplay is strictly committed to spreading the gospel of deep house music and this sermon comes courtesy of the aforementioned, with a bit of help from Laurence Guy. He appears first with the title track, which samples a pretty breathtaking strings section mixed with a spangling Derrick May style synth melody which fades out and gives way to a pretty wicked arpeggio... and some cowbells; sold already? Next up is Junktion with "Breakfast At Midnight" an offering of deep and dusty late night disco that certainly takes its cues from KDJ, but that's totally fine by us. The Brame & Hamo remix is more dancefloor friendly, slo-mo deep house that fans of Genius of Time or MCDE will appreciate. Finally Leseman's "On My Mind" offers us another deep and dusty house gem that revels in its beautifully sombre Motor City vibes. Not bad for a guy from Utrecht!

Review: Some two years on from the release of his acclaimed, in-demand debut album, The Boat Party, Kyle Julian Hall delivers the follow-up From Joy. Intriguingly, the eight tracks come from the Kyle Hall archives, all recorded by the young producer before the turn of the decade, and is presented as a homage to where Kyle lived at the time in his father's basement on the west side of Detroit on Joy Rd. From the outset, Hall's second album is loose, melodious, heady and synthesizer-heavy, with broken beats and wild, experimental rhythms combining effortlessly with jazz, jazz-funk, boogie, soul, Herbie Hancock and '80s electro influences. It makes for thrilling and hugely enjoyable listening and offers proof of Hall's musicianship and ability to repackage a wide range of influences.

Review: For their latest vinyl missive, Malmo's Geography Records crew have allowed Sex Tags eccentric DJ Fett Burger free reign. In typical fashion, he's handled everything, including the distinctive artwork, contributing two original tracks and a remix of Shakarchi & Straneus' 2013 jam "Either Way". It's this that kicks off the EP, the Sex Tags man turning it into a faithfully wide-eyed chunk of loose-limbed, new age influenced deep house warmth. "Beef Sound USA Remix", produced with little-known Finn Stiletti Ana, is a quirky fusion of relentless disco cowbells, hammered-out drum machine beats, hardcore-era synth sounds and dreamy chords. Finally, he goes solo on "Flanger USA Bonus Beats", dropping the kind of dense, disco-influenced drum machine jam that will get dancers sweating when dropped mid mix.

Review: Leonel Castillo is back to present the second serving of his own Third Side Wax, and as expected, we're faced with four deliciously deep and mystical house cuts for the late night jammin'. "Track 1" oozes style and mystique from every angle - along with beautiful conga rhythms, while "Track 2" slams a bumpier Chicago groove with blasting chords. "Track 3" takes things down to a jazzier tempo, but it's "Track 4" that does it for us thanks to a wormhole melody and heavy-hitting beats.

Review: Ibadan's first Leads & Bites EP, released some five years ago, was a little less than an all-star celebration of everything that's good about the long-running New York imprint. This belated follow-up is, happily, every bit as good. Jerome Sydenham kicks things off with a brand new edit of Kerri Chandler's string-laden, disco-meets-deep house jam "Atmospheric Dub", before the same producer joins forces with hip-house legend Tyree Cooper on the Ego Trip style bleep-house bump of "Universal Rhythm". Flip for two more Sydenham edits: an undulating, disco-not-disco take on Free Radicals' "I Just Can't Turn It Loose", and a sparkling, stretched-out revision of Kerri Chandler's Earth People remake of Pal Joey's brilliant early '90s, Chic-sampling gem "Dance".

Review: The 4th instalment from Australia's Analogue Attic Recordings comes from label bosses Sean La'Brooy and Alex Albrecht. Utilising field recordings from a popular Melbourne location, Edgewater Towers effortlessly transitions between ambient and dance orientated pieces.

Review: The perma quirky approach of Sex Tags man DJ Sotofett is what makes his productions so thrilling and his records so admired. Here, he pops up on Aaron 'Fit' Siegel's FIT Sound imprint, with a pair of formidable, percussion-heavy workouts. A-side "Tribute To Sore Fingers" is particularly potent, with the Sex Tags maniac layering dense African percussion over heavy, bleep-era bass and metronomic drum machine kicks. The flipside boasts a similarly drum-heavy Arabic workout, full of snaking, North African melody lines, dense ethnic hits (recorded by regular Sotofett collaborator Gilb'r) and subtle but booming electronics.

Review: The second Sound Signature repress of the week offers a chance to re-assess the moment that the wider world was introduced to the talents of one of Detroit's most loved selectors. Released back in 1999, the Essential Selections Vol. 1 EP saw Theo collaborate with a certain Marcellus Pittman across three cuts that still sound as vibrant today. A Side lead "Night Of The Sagitarius" has the loose drum arrangements and gritty low end that will appeal to contemporary ears, but it's also augmented by an almost chilling sense of melody. Face down "Selector's Theme" is the pair in introspective mood whilst "African Roots" belongs in the canon of all time Theo greats.

Review: Francis Inferno Orchestra, known to his close friends and Griffin James, is one of Melbourne's finest house producers, and this guy is repping Oz hard, alongside the lies of Dro Carey and the Butter Sessions crew. He returns to Superconscious with "Kalamari Desert" and "Harmony" on side A of the plate; the former is a dreamy, broken remnant of a house tune, while the latter chugs forwards with wholesome drum programming and angelic melodies. On the B-side, "Kamakama" produces the first hint of something more moody, a little darker and more evil thanks to those gargling stutter basslines; Butter Sessions resident Sleep D provides the remix action, and comes through with flying colours after an injection of something a little funkier into the mix,

Review: Finale Underground is back with Vol. 3 and this time the focus in on Chicago. Four tunes from Chicago luminaries that have made their marks in the scene, though all sounding different, still staying true to the Chicago ethos. Specter's deep house jam called "5th of Hen" with its lush sounds and steady melodies sets the tone. Chicago Skyway follows with a club banger titled "Digits LG" where the pulsating synth takes up the attention, giving an old school feel with contemporary string sounds. Hakim Murphy starts the B side with "Slowdown", an acid house tune that shows off some of Murphy's drum programming skills. Finally, Steven Tang finishes the session with an the tune of aggressive synth lines and a bouncy bass called "String Tension". Future Chicago is a well rounded ep that features four different takes on the current affairs of the Chicago sound.

Review: The rise of Norway's DJ Sotofett - a man whose eclectic tastes and eccentric nature can be heard in every oddball release - has been one of the more pleasing dance music developments of recent years. Here he brings his refreshingly unusual approach to Austria's Laton label with six more chunks of distinctive oddness. Highlights are naturally plentiful, from the dusty drum machine beats, bleeping electronics and new age deep house chords of "Alternate Mix (feat FIT)", to the hallucinogenic chords, trippy electronics and sped-up 4/4 beats of "Higher Inda Jungle". Predictably, he doffs a cap to classic deep jungle on "Breaking Set of the Jungle Fantasy", while the title track is a humid, feverish blend of delay-laden drum machine work and tropical bird noises.

Review: Release number 4 for Pleasure unit, see's the debut release from Lunar Concept Edgar Moon and nephew Junior. A wonky slice of stringy afro House backed with two remixes, one from label mates Les Crocodiles taking it on a slow trip up river.

Review: After their contribution to "Far & Beyond" compilation, Owen Jay & Melchior Sultana get back to Deep Explorer finally with a full EP, where they combine different styles in just 4 tracks. Deep instrumental, vocals and even electro vibes.Everything under the smooth shield of the Batti Batti team. The circle is completed by the remix of "Make me feel" (the track that opened the doors of Deep Explorer to the Batti Batti family) by the legendary Mike Grant (Moods & Grooves).

Review: Ruff Daft returns, and after a various artist EP for number 7, number 8 on the label goes back to the founder, with three new tracks from Cottam
'Washed Out' kicks things off, at the cross roads between Mood Hut & Basic Channel where dub techno sensibilities meet dreamy chords for a delectable deep house track.
'Horns' harks back to Cottam's earliest releases, with an afro-ish horn loop teased out over four minutes until the full loop and bass kick in to devastating effect.
'A Ruff Draft' sees Cottam look back towards his techno roots, with a killer kick drum and raw acid lending an abrasive edge to a well rounded EP of varied styles.

Review: Shadeleaf Music are back in 2016 with this little house scorcher form newcomer Jonna, and it's precisely the sort of gear to wet our appetites on a Thursday morning, now anxiously counting down the clock till the weekend, and some much needed shaking. "Through The Night" moves the groove in fine style with a funky bassline and a soulful touch, but "Without Drugs" gives us our deep house fix - minus the narcs, of course - and "Music For People" drops a wet, slamming guitar bassline over distant samples and gorgeous drums. Detroit's very own Kai Alce - long-time Omar S collaborator - gives us a remix of "Through The Night", alongside KZR's own wonderful dub version. Lovely.

Review: Tayfun Sarier and Stefan Rijsmus have been delivering consistently dope levels of tech and deep house since 2012, starting with a pair of stormers fro Liebe Detail's digital wing, and now making a debut on Prescription's newer sub-label, Balance. "Visual Basic" is as Chicago as you can get for a dance tune - soulful samples, and wavey chords all-round - while "Righteous" heads a little deeper underground. "Heart 2 Heart" is probably our pick of the lot, thanks to its deep, luscious pads, and "Rotation" ties things off in old-school guise...oh, those keys.

Review: In Haus Wax has been going strong since 2008 thanks to both a succession of appearances from artists like Ekkohaus and Adam Shelton, but also their very own 'in haus' house sound. To please your tech house delights this time, we have Fuse's Seb Zito with the percussion-heavy roll of "Soft Cell", the minimalistic and finely stripped-back jam "Puru" by Javier Carballo and Carlos Sanchez, Tijn moodier and deeper house gem ""Zee", and Liam Geddes' funky and lo-fi "Monday Got Me Dazed". Tools for the beat thrashers.

Review: Ugly Music head honcho, DJ Harvey disciple and all round UK disco don Felix Dickinson is back, this time on Bristol institution Futureboogie. He teams up with the even more legendary Robert Owens on this EP, so hold on to your hats! "A Day's Reality (classic mix)" is already a house anthem: Owens soaring and emotional vocals over a bumping bassline, uplifting keys and the catchiest bleep melody this side of "Baby Wants To Ride". Hang on, isn't that what Justin Vandervolgen actually samples on his remix up next? Not quite, but it's damn close and sounds damn great at that. On the flip is "A Day's Reality (Dedication mix) which is in the more soulful disco funk vein and it's totally sublime, just wait for that strings section and the backing vocals; just brilliant!

Review: After a geographically imposed hiatus (the travel links between Nottingham and Hong Kong are intermittent to say the least) Pressed For Time label bosses Rhythm Plate are back with a new project featuring Massive Attack/Presence vocalist Sarah Jay. The original mix of 'No More' is a moody house roller with some trademark Rhythm Plate chord progressions and speaker thumping bass frequencies. Using chopped up licks of Sarah Jay's vocal to introduce the groove it subtly segues into the main vocal and then builds to a euphoric climax complete with strings and synth flourishes. The Goshawk (50% Rhythm Plate DNA) Vocal Flight treads a more New Jersey deep garage vibe with swinging hats, lush warm chords, bumping bassline and chopped up sax. One for the late night, locked in crew. Homepark (Ornate/Third Strike) go for a more party vibe with tougher drums and a Mr Fingers style bassline. A proper dub mix if you will. Finally, Mad Maxx Traxx are baxxx on PFT with a speaker damaging Dance Mania style drum track. No messing. Rumour has it there may be some more of 'No More' watch this space.

Review: While others are worried about 'slow months' or releasing at the right time, the Sued imprint has a knack for coming out with records when you least expect them. Moreover, they happen to also be absolutely sick, each and every time. This time, SW and SVN's label sees the latter team up with Dynamo Dreesen - long-time associate and co-member of the Dresvn unit - and their newly formed producer/friend, A Made Up Sound. Yup, we never expected this either before their debut as a team on Dynamo's own Acido label. "Track 1" is a head-driven, stripped down kinda lick that spins and coils its subtle bells and lo-fi bass around a steady kick, before nose-diving into a funkier terrain; on Side B, "Track 2" rattles and bangs its tribal percussion without a steady four-to-the-floor, while "Track 3" shifts everything down to a murky, slo-mo jam made up of grey-scaled low tones, flangered percussion and, well, the trio's inimitable style. Recommended, as always.