Prosumer – Panorama Bar 03 review

Frequent visitors to Berlin will already be familiar with beardy DJ Prosumer’s talents behind the ones and twos, but he’s yet to become a well-known face on the UK house underground. In some regards, that’s a little surprising, but then he’s always been more of a DJ than a producer. Sure, he’s released a few 12” singles in his time, but they’re a rarity; his impressive reputation in his adopted home city comes purely from his skills as a selector and mixer.

If you’ve yet to hear him rock a party, you’d be well advised to check this debut mix CD for Ostgut Ton – the third in the occasional Panorama Bar series. It offers a neat summary of his trademark style, which offers a fun but mature, catch-all take on underground house. For Prosumer, house is about more than micro-genres, musical fashion or ketamine-addled loop tracks. He’s been around the block a few times and has a broad knowledge base, with the record collection to match. On Panorama Bar 3 he uses all these skills and attributes to deliver a classic house mix that could almost be described as timeless.

While there’s strong vein of quality deep house running throughout – starting with the expressive opener from Steffi – the bearded selector also touches on classic Chi-town jack (Fingers Inc), classic, Detroit-influenced tech-house (Soundso), British bass music (the garage/UK funky fusion of Lil’ Silva), sprightly electronic disco (Morgan Geist), bumpin’ underground classics (T.O’s ace “Over And Over”), soul-flecked disco cut-ups (Circulation) and the jazzual low-end exploits of Theo Parrish. He also finds space for classic-sounding tackle from Romanthony, jazzy bass-and-beats from Oracy, and a “Can U Feel It” tribute from QX1.

In the hands of a lesser DJ, this would be a mess, but Prosumer is a bit of a master when it comes to blending vinyl. Certainly, this sounds like a one-take vinyl mix, and a superb one-take mix at that. The flow is immaculate and the mixing spot-on, ensuring a constantly evolving journey that will appeal to the head as much as the feet. There’s no forced energy or in-your-face style, just great records blended by a proper pro. As house mixes go, it’s pretty special.

Matt Anniss