OD Music Group unearths four great Steeve Eckhart tracks and has them remixed by Waxlife, Terrence Pearce, Evans and label co-boss Ariel Camusso. The results equal some fine house and techno moments that you need in your life. First up, Waxlife tackles “Life Water,” which is an intricate bit of sketch sound design of the sort Villalobos would lap up. Its alien, abstract and arresting simply because of how weird the sounds are. Cape Town DJ/producer Terrence Pearce, with releases on Kolour, Futureboogie, Wolf Music and more, then tackles “Pop Corn.” This one is much slower and more sumptuously designed. It’s a deep, lazy and soothing listen. In addition to a beautifully classy and heart warming house remix of “Sweet Moment” from Evans, the package closes out with the sleazy, street leaning ghetto slang of Camusso’s reworking of “The Black Pope.” It slaps you round the face in fantastic fashion and closes out a great EP.
It’s the time of year right now when all roads lead to Miami, with both the globally renowned Winter Music Conference and the Ultra Festival taking place only a few weeks ago. While both events are now in the history book, Winter Essentials Volume 1, a hefty package from the team at the fledgling Vicey Loops imprint, is on hand to remind us of the city’s unquestionable dance music pedigree.
A watertight wedge of sultry and uptempo house music, the package sees a raft of emerging producers join the fray, with no less than nine tracks on offer. More a collection of club-ready tracks than an album per se, that’s all good in the hood here as each one basks in a glow that’s hard to jettison. While the agenda is firmly house, it’s also house in its many stylings and guises too, with everything from celestial hues to heaving jams getting in on the action.
If you’re in need of something different to pepper your set with, then Jimmy Luna’s “U Move” ought to do the trick, while Lefty Gunz’s “7014” sounds like Daryl Pandy jamming at the controls with Mr. Fingers, with a smidgen of hip-house capabilities thrown into the equation for good measure. Yamil Bandi’s musical nous really shines through on the effortlessly cool “Beats of Love,” a track that features a mound of beautiful piano chords and a heavy sprinkling of magic to boot.
Matteo Floris’ “Flip Da Trip” is unashamedly dance floor driven, while Tuff Dub & Eargasm’s “In Deep” is cut from a similar cloth in that regard. Watch out for the claps on the latter mind you, as they’re sure to prompt consternation when let out of the bag. Nick Safado culminates and sees us out the door thanks to the stunning pop-influenced number that is “What’s Up.” What’s up here, then, is a gorgeous, almost lackadaisical gem with shades of ’80s gusto and camp all intact. Of everything on show here, it’s by a distance the most striking — and a contender for my own track of the month too. Releasing Winter Essential Volume 1 with summer just around the corner might be something of an unusual move, but titles aside, this is most definitely an outing that’s worth dedicating some time too.
House music has never been more popular than it is right now and someone very much defining its direction is Oli Furness. The Manchester man is running his own Music is Love label, parties at Sankeys under the same name and is also producing his own red-hot jams. Here come three more on said label that are no nonsense weapons. “Hunger” goes first and is a bouncy, tight number with groaning female vocals, oversized kick drums that have real ping to them and plenty of hardcore stabs. “Overjack” is even more out there with its tight melody phrase dancing up and down, reverse stabs bringing and old-school flava and tons of whistles, tin pot DIY percussion and vibes galore. Last but not least, “Creepin in the Shadows” is a slinky bit of MAW style house with rolling drums, street wise vocal snippets and super slick hi-hats. Overall, this is a seriously hefty EP of house music that makes you wanna move.
The Hardkiss brothers, Scott, Gavin and Robbie, have long been considered pioneers of the diverse West Coast sound. Unfortunately, Scott passed away a year ago, although his musical memory lives on brilliantly here thanks to the Revolution – The Hardkiss Remixes, a four-track EP that sees the three all play their role in remixing “Revolution” found on the new Hardkiss album, 1991.
It’s Scott who gets us going, with his remix a fitting swan song for a man of undoubted talent. Beautiful in its simplicity, it’s also rich in singalong vibes and features crossover potential too. A more than worthy way with which to bow out on, there’s a melancholic edge attached to its upbeat hues.
Next is Gavin, who expertly leans on the bass guitar for his very harmonious remix, while Robbie injects it with dance floor zest aplenty, resulting in a remix that’s unlike the others on display. The EP concludes with Conspiracy 3’s effort, as they throw the kitchen sink in in what’s a bassline-led, funk-soaked affair. With four stunning remixes on offer, this one is well worth checking out.
Read our exclusive interview with Gavin and Robbie Hardkiss about their new album, 1991, here.
