Love it when a plan comes together. And in common with many of the best ones, it was hatched over a beer or two and a chance encounter, on this occasion with London-based label Native City.
The imprint promises groove-based beats designed for jacking and with the rather terrific Farrell EP from one-to-watch Ashworth, they sure don‘t disappoint. No sir-ree.
Title cut Farrell is muscular and precise, a well-honed hunk of a track that really gains momentum the further you wade in yet with the addition of some deft touches and neat vocal snatches is far from formulaic. The re-shape from the criminally-underrated Dudley Strangeways (Leftback/Deso) is somewhat looser in the nicest possible way. It’s groovy too for sure and is a fitting introduction to those that don’t know him yet of a producer that is really coming into form. Recommended? You bet.
Chopper is a cheeky little number too; infectious, funky, hypnotic. Mike Starr’s re-work is something of, ahem, a star turn. Mesmerising, garage flavoured and beautifully bumpin’ to boot, the cut also makes splendid use of The Wild Angels sample made famous by Andrew Weatherall on Primal Scream’s Loaded.
If the British house and techno movement were electing a first lady then Rai Scott would certainly be in with a shout. Because over the last few years whether as part of 2DeepSoul or owner of Inner Shift Music, both in collaboration with partner Brad Peterson, or indeed as a solo artist, Scott has built and been instrumental in constructing a body of work to be proud of.
Now the story goes from strength to strength with Scott’s first solo release on vinyl for a UK label, the essential Inner Shift EP Volume 1 for consistently-excellent London-based imprint Ornate Music.
The opening track Forgotten Sleep is far from soporific despite its title and arguably one of Scott’s more punchy productions. It’s a bit tasty too. The Edinburgh-based producer does a fine job in balancing the dance-floor potential of the track with her own ambient-toned tendencies and in doing so fashions a cut that works splendidly on so many levels.
With a rolling bassline that is hypnotic with a capital H, trademark sterling percussion work and an intentionally-muffled vocal that for once adds to rather than detracts from the piece, Here & Now is Scott in fine fettle and for my money one of her most accomplished productions to date. Tune, as they say.
Do We Really Know is Scott letting loose a little, deep house with impact for sure but with a smile, a summery vibe and her own angelic tones sprinkled all over it. A delight.
If all this wasn’t already enough, the Ornate crew have really pulled out all the stops by enlisting Spain’s very own don of the deep Dubbyman to do the business on Do We Really Know. And he does. Taking an already quality track, his Break The Beat Mix opts for a less direct kick and approach yet still manages to beef up the cut and add a little Madrilenian magic that hints at time spent listening to old jazz records.
Scott for first lady? She gets my vote.
Little more than a year old and only five releases in yet George Beridze, owner of Cologne-based Rough House Rosie, is clearly on to a good thing. Because with the likes of Alex Danilov, Brother G, Shine Grooves and HVL already on board the imprint has been marked out as one to watch and even collect.
With production number five, the Silent Movie Sounds II EP, that reputation will undoubtedly be enhanced further.
Though with only a handful of releases to his name, Pjotr has nonetheless managed to catch the attention of many a watcher of the underground due largely to the fact those outings have been with keenly followed Russian labels, Ethereal Sound and Udacha. That and the fact his work often combines melancholy and melody, optimism and honest-to-goodness house and sometimes even a touch of jazz in the broadest sense of the word. His production here, June, is as infectious and decent as deep house gets these days and will no doubt please admirers.
A5 is another mercurial talent whose work is highly rated (Appetit/Rawax/Udacha). Here with Dzhaz he lets loose his more abstract jazz - or should that be dzhaz? - side, letting the double bass do the work with plinky-plonky chords and hi-hat playing a supporting role to great effect.
Promising Russian newcomer Gamayun gets a run out with Slum Odyssey, a groovy, catchy and yet strangely robotic number that augurs well for the future, while rounding off the package is the wonderful LAAK. Recent releases with Monochromatic, Appian Sounds and their own mighty imprint Austere Recordings have been both eagerly awaited and well received. So Much Inside is more of the same impressive, understated, playful house/techno hybrid that proves the notion that less is more. Go buy.
Seasoned Chicago-based producer Joey Kay has been in the game for more than 20 years now but the last few have seen him in the form of his life. Outstanding appearances on the likes of My Love Is Underground, Minuendo, Série Limitée and his own label Stylistic have made him a man in demand.
His latest release, the Altered Tempos EP for super Spanish imprint Troubled Kids, will only raise his stock even further.
Gloriously straddling that line between the deep and the funk is the wonderful opener One-Eighteen. Brim full of the kind of atmosphere and feeling that many would-be producers can only ponder, it is a lesson in how to do deep house to encourage both dancing and listening in equal part.
Off The Deep End (Kay and Lo-Ki’s edit) is the Chicagoan doing just that as he strips the track back to basics. Bassy, beefy and with a touch of the Mike Huckaby’s about it, it is certain to be pounding a basement bash near you any day now.
As with the EP opener, Black Hat is house music of the more soulful, funky and highly-danceable kind. Delightful in the extreme, an inspirational groovy piano in tow, chunky deep chords too and with an optimistic air, an ‘on repeat’ tune if ever there was.
Providing quality until the very last drop is Reverser (Edit no. 4). Dripping with soul and wrapped in emotion, Kay nails this deep house thang to the floor.
Hard to believe that Yore Records has already reached the 30 release milestone. Because despite a discography bursting with quality in depth and a roster to die for, the Cologne-based label fronted by Andy Vaz seems to go about its business with the minimum of fuss.
And we are talking an imprint that has become a second home to Rick Wade, gave Kez YM a break early doors, picked up on Patrice Scott when he was still making a name for himself here in Europe as well as featuring choice cuts from the likes of Dubbyman, Marcello Napoletano and Vaz himself.
So it is especially pleasing that for the big three-oh that Yore should welcome into the family a firm favourite here at bringdownthewalls HQ, the Edinburgh-based outfit 2DeepSoul with their three-track treat Mood Sync.
Opening tune Intrinsic could almost be the duo’s theme and is arguably their best offering to date. It sums up perfectly what 2DeepSoul are all about and in turn all that is good about them. Deep, driving beats, perky perc, melodic rather more than moody despite the EP’s title yet with an ambient overtone and ethereal quality, almost to the point of dreamy, draped delicately across the track. It has the fingerprints in particular of Rai Scott, one half of the partnership alongside Brad Peterson, marked indelibly all over it.
Flow Theory delivers more of the same top-draw cosmic deepness albeit with a little more broodiness and punch and is complete with a nifty little Hammond action in the vein of Scott Grooves collaborator Chris Codish.
Closing track Power is even more robust though less sparky than the other two cuts yet every bit as superb and is the one that most puts the ‘mood’ into Mood Sync.
Much to my regret and indeed eternal shame as a music lover, it took me until the Clouds Are Gone EP on Deeper Soul from 1995 to finally ‘discover’ Alton Miller. That was more than a decade into the Detroit artist’s recording career and with releases already running into double digits on essential labels such as 20:20, Peacefrog, Plant E and Track Mode.
Better late than never I guess. Which has made it all the more satisfying that a likeminded soul should give me the heads up before it dip below my radar on the man’s latest release on Moods & Grooves, his third for Mike Grant’s long-established and ever-relevant imprint but more than ten years since his last outing for the Motor City outfit.
Not that Miller has been in the least bit idle during that time. Yet whatever the reasons for the hiatus from M&G, the Ngizo Ku Linda EP is nevertheless a welcome and worthy re-acquaintance. Recorded in South Africa and featuring the sublime vocal talents of Bantu Soul, Ngizo Ku Linda is a one track-three versions triumph. Classic soulful house in every sense of the phrase.
Given the talent on board for this project it is little wonder all three tracks exude confidence and class. Melding afro, house and a touch of jazz, the original version is achingly soulful and effortlessly smooth, the renowned South African artist/producer’s vocal delivery both heart-warming and yet somehow heart-breaking at the same time. Divine.
For those still afraid of vocals, the instrumental edit should take care of that being a beautiful, evocative and lingeringly gentle breeze of a track with little intent other than to ease and tease a dance-floor.
Erstwhile Miller cohort Abicah Soul (aka Miguel Davis) pitches in with a top-notch remix that adds a little more Detroit grit, though pleasingly not too much. Hanging onto some of the original vocal snippets and weighing in with a punchy Quentin Harris-style stab, Davis goes deeper and just a little dirtier too. Recommended.
It says much about an artist’s ability, especially in the house and techno arena where the Ep whether it be vinyl or digital is king, when he or she can stretch their work across the length of an album without a dip in quality. No filler, no padding, no unnecessary noodling.
Brad P [aka Brad Peterson] has managed just that with his debut album Inner Visions on the lovely Inner Shift label he runs jointly with partner Rai Scott. But then it probably comes as no surprise to those that know as the American artist now settled in Edinburgh is something of a producers’ producer and an underground favourite these days amongst those heads that keep a canny ear to the ground.
In a recording career stretching back to the turn of the Millennium both solo or in partnership with Scott as 2DeepSoul and encompassing labels such as Altered Moods, Minuendo, Moods & Grooves and Yore, Peterson has gradually built a loyal following devoted to his deep, lush grooves and ethereal vibes inspired by the early house and techno pioneers, notably the one and only Larry Heard.
Until now though Peterson’s work has been confined to a string of must-have Eps on vinyl. With Inner Visions, however, he has been able to cut loose and skilfully shape his ideas across an eight-track digital album supported by an essential four-track colour-marbled vinyl release of the same name.
Whichever option you plump for though it is nevertheless a case of satisfaction guaranteed. Quality is always key with Peterson. Album highlights are in no short supply, from the perky house/techno hybrid opener Don’t You Know to the über-chilled Slow Walker and from the truly-inspired future jazz of Light Years to the more abstract and intriguing Polyphony Trip, Peterson is a man on form right now.
No filler, no padding, no noodling? No way. That’s not Peterson’s style.
CHECK OUT: Inner Visions by Brad P on Inner Shift Music here.
