Deep House Recommendations May 2011

Review: Scottish duo Graeme Smith and Craig Smith aka 6th Borough Project release their first full length on Delusions of Grandeur. One Night In The Borough splits as three 12"s; this final vinyl edition kicks off with two surprisingly house dominated cuts. "B.U.R.T" and "The Fool", whose intro does indeed fool via a standard tech house first half. Abruptly, the music cuts and from nowhere an immense disco accapella cuts in - the beat returns as a disco fuelled funk attack, 6th Borough project as we know (and love) them! On the flip, three tracks of 6th Borough project's highest standard are on display. Warm, low slung, swinging and expertly executed disco house exudes. These guys know what they do best and by sticking to it they succeed time and time again. 6th Borough project - Juno salute you!

Review: Due to popular demand Tronicsole resident HiRo gathers up two of his most ubiquitous boogietech edits for a strictly limited vinyl release on a grey twelve. "Let Me Show You" flips a mid 90s slice of classic Chicago jack from Romanthony, embellishing the rhythm with rich chords and bouncy deep bass which works nicely with the looped vocal refrain which has a certain electroclash rowdiness to it. Side B is on a similar old school tip with "All Star Madness Magic" a veritable melting pot of 90s house brilliance with sly usage of Kenny Dope's Minnie Ripperton sampling endeavours just one of the sources used.

Review: New Jersey based house don DJ Qu recently dropped his debut album, entitled Gymnastics, on his Strength Music label. In addition to the CD release we're also treated to three separate 12" releases featuring album tracks. The first instalment opens with broken piano keys battling for your attention with the slick beat which forms the rhythmic backbone of "First Down". Our favourite part is the breakdown, which truly showcases the gritty nature of the drum programming before the piano comes back with one final flourish! Next up "Juicyfruit" has a distinctly tougher edge to it, with gurgling vocals buried beneath mechanical loops and hissing atmospherics. Flip over for "Babyluv" and "Prayer" with the former's almost Joy Orbison style vocals offering a nice contrast to the latter's moody techno thump.

Review: The second sampler to precede Hometaping's forthcoming CD compilation snappily entitled Hometaping Is Fun has our stamp of approval thanks to the mammoth contribution from Deep Space Orchestra. "Louisville Slugger" is a truly epic future techno composition that ripples through various movements as its struts through the ten minutes that hog the A Side. The duo have impressed already with drops on Kirk's ART imprint and FOTO but "Louisville Slugger" has elevated them to a new level in the production stakes. On the flip Andy Ash delivers an icy punch of a track in the deep groove dynamics of "Dime Piece" whilst Italy's finest Nicholas continues his gravitation towards a pure house sound on rough bump of "Where I've Been".

Review: Anyone who indulged in Touched, last year's debut release from Blondes will have elicited a certain gleeful shriek at the news boutique label RVNG INTL was working with the NYC duo on a series of conceptual twelve inch releases spread across the months of 2011. The first release, centred on the theme of love and hate, can only be described as auspicious. Naturally for a band that have toured extensively in the period before and after Touched was released, the new material builds on the heady hypnosis of these early productions, delivering them in a more polished veneer that retains the duo's capacity for devastation. "Love" is Blondes at their tribalistic best, steadily building from woozy beginnings into a throbbing house rhythm drowned out by shamanistic chanting courtesy of some smart Meredith Monk sampling. A potent part of the Blondes live set, "Lover" remains powerful here, not least when the midpoint momentum gets turned up a notch. Flipside excursion "Hater" is naturally darker in tone, with the crisp reverse cascading percussion cutting through the thick bottom heavy throb, before the track twists inside out into a thrillingly industrial lysergic jaunt skywards.

Review: "Natural Spray" finds Idadan boss Jerome Sydenham in fine form - it's one of those epic deep house growlers intended solely for the floor. The constantly rising momentum delivered by those key stabs, washes of euphoria inducing textures and that booming percussive rhythm all point towards the no-nonsense, heads down peak time glory moment. Complementing this is a brace of B Side productions between Sydenham and the Berlin dwelling Canadian musician Aschka - presenting two variants on "Daphne". Both the Club Mix and Brooklyn Dub retain enough brooding techno potency, with more spinal flex of the latter just winning out.

Review: The third and final 12" release from DJ Qu to accompany his Gymnastics album arrives bearing yet more stripped back brilliance from the man otherwise known as Ramon Lisandro Quezada. On the A Side you'll find the moody, almost Sandwell District shuffle of "Thrilla" co-exiting with a deep house jam from Underground Quality impresario Jus-Ed, who managed to worm his way onto the album! Flipping over, you'll find the lush Detroit chords of "Opened Arms", a sample of Resident Advisor's Todd Burns extolling the virtues of DJ Qu on "What We've Concluded Thus Far" (definitely the album's funniest moment) and the cold, calculated mood "Mixing Room".

Review: The ever mysterious Midnight Hours collective drop their third twelve of sumptuous deep house productions - with the requisite anonymity still in tact! The jury is still out on who was responsible for the previous instalment so we won't waste time debating who is behind these three bumpers. Side A opts for the subaqueous jazzed out dusty cabinets approach, with gloopy bass and muggy shuffling drums the backbone to heavy soul vocal hooks and those shimmering chord washes that Detroit seems to have a trademark on! The flipside ups the pace, with two variants on the same track which might just sample Labelle - the first a more melodic accompaniment to the latter's heavily percussive and slightly slower dubby vibe.

Review: We Play House continue their limited edition coloured vinyl series with three slabs of Humandrome magic spread across two side of very bright yellow vinyl. Mutant house jam "Rude Low" features the kind of wigged out instrumentation that brings to mind DJ Koze at his eccentric best, with a bit of an 'everything but the kitchen sink' approach, but thanks to some deft arrangement the track never gets too cluttered. The keys in particular are hugely pleasing! Sharing the A Side is the James Teej remix of the same track which takes things down the deeper, more stripped back path. Flip over for two more original cuts from the Japanese producer, with the rubber band acid twang of "Babylon" just shading the heads down beats and trancey synths of "Northern Roader".

Review: Prescription Classics continue their sterling effort to reissue Chicago's House music heritage - launching the first in a series of what we hope is many From The Vaults EPs. Originally released way back in 1998, "Coming Back" is a fine example of US Garage from Kurt Harmon, adding a soulful holler that rides the deep bumping rhythms of what was originally Ron Trent's "Pop, Dip and Spin" with natural aplomb. On the flip it's Mr Trent in full effect with the 1995 gem "Piano Track" that swiftly locks into a heavily percussive groove, with swathes of looped piano flourishes and the ever present vocal lead vying for attention amidst some energy driven chord washes.

Review: Norm Talley's "The Journey" is somewhat of a modern day Detroit classic. A secret weapon of many, it's been a staple within record bags since its first release in May 2009. Scott Grooves is one of those, and in true Grooves style, he's done an edit of it. The difference with "The Journey" though, is that this the first of his countless edits he's actually released to the record buying public. "Panther Remix" is an endearingly low slung, subtle take on Norm's original made by Grooves and Kataconda. Rolling percussion and progressing chords envelope from the offset, and get increasingly endearing as the track chugs along. "Panther" is irresistibly mellow whilst retaining its Detroit house appeal. Flipping over, the Scott Grooves Beats version focuses on the hollow beat of the percussion, honing in on a breathtakingly simple loop.