Reviews

Compilation Review: ‘The Masters Series – François K’ (Renaissance)

Matt Oliver Leave a Comment

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★★★★☆

Must…not…use…the…phrase…musical journey… However, both discs start with hall-of-famer François K asking you whether you are dancing comfortably with the offer of poolside house and funky grins, before progressing into barbarian techno seeing the spinner turn from easygoing accommodator to sinew-snapping overlord. Kevorkian is chancing his arm to be honest; his ears have obviously never left the streets, yet you’d hazard a guess that not everyone who starts with him stays to the end.

Seeing the sun dip until eyeballing its fiery fury quickly dissolves the homely introductions, Daniel Avery & Factory Floor herald disc one’s change in pressure with eerily wound synth lines and acid rebounds. The party is both over and just warming up, heading steadily deeper and darker despite the upbeat resistance of Detroit Swindle, and Kevorkian holding his nerve in the furnace’s ensuing heat with Marcus Worgull & Peter Padeike’s “Salam.” Scuba starts to blister the dance floor with drawn out domination, and to follow this with Locked Groove’s Balearic soother “Dream Within a Dream” is like an ice lolly to a sore throat. A Made Up Sound and Blawan then replace the tranquilizer with raging hot chillies.

Assured assertion and funky, tropical seasoning has the good times flowing through Michel de Hey & Flashmob. Sunshine streaks from disc two’s every corner until again, François’ predatory hunting and digital deconstruction starts to storm the place, letting rumbling techno shot-callers Stephen Brown and Gary Beck shear you with their hi-hats.

File under: Technasia, Nautiluss, Alden Tyrell

Album Review: Mr. C / ‘Smell the Coffee’ (Superfreq)

Matt Oliver Leave a Comment

Mr. C Smell the Coffee

★★★★☆

Wake up and get a whiff of this legendary house personality’s beans, sniffing at decadence but wanting you to breathe in and summon architects of the 303 and 808. Mr. C being one of that very ilk himself, a sustained UK representer getting punchy on the drums while sinewy nip and tuck rhythms loop until they’ve braided your brain and given the tunes their robustness.

Bringing a little Ebenezer Goode to the otherwise stoic acid stroll “The Future” after “Open Up” dances and prances to classic glam house, “War Games” is precisely the kind of squelching, shifty jacker that would have once been presumed the work of another entity. “Can’t Get Enough” lets red light sleaze sneak into its cow-belled lair of wickedness as C welcomes you with pointed tail and pitchfork, then takes you to your leader as self-help instructional “Synchronicity” exits the darkness.

Only the fullness of sound and a lack of vinyl crackle/needle fluff separate these from being ’88 rediscoveries. You don’t think it has set out to be a retrospective LP, but the reverence is excellent, going on to cover the Moroder-ish “The Hunt” and battlestar electro pair “Step It Up” and “Interaction” (which go some way to explaining that pretty naff sleeve). Something for the dance floor to really absorb and take stock of when all it can see is passing cellular glow and the flash of a CDJ.

File under: Evil Eddie Richards, Dave Clarke, Richard Sen

Album Review: DJ Koze / ‘Amygdala’ (Pampa)

Matt Oliver Leave a Comment

DJ Koze Amygdala

★★★★☆

Koze through the looking glass is a reading of bedtime stories for cosmic disco romantics. A follower of its own path and bringing an enchantment honored by the album cover’s mediaeval superhero impersonation, its light-fingered grip holds firm throughout. Heavy is the path less travelled, winding up like clockwork until the springs go loco when it does, with sighing vocals indicative of the reassurances Koze consistently offers.

Deep house settlers keep things simple, working a little heartening charm that lets you reach your own woozy highs and joys, whether by long unbroken background synth lines (“Royal Asscher Cut”), the impeccably preened (“Ich Schreib’ Dir Ein Buch”) or just by knowing that Koze will take his time until you’re soul-deep in the beats, with a plinking set of chimes here or a Beams-worthy appearance by Matthew Dear there.

“Magical Boy” notifies that spring has sprung, complete with the sound of bounding bunnies and a cast of quirks. “Das Wort” holds a flashlight to the face of Dirk von Lowtzow, but becomes a cuddly folk-in-toytown detour, part of another facet that Koze might spring something new at any moment despite gambolling down a pretty preordained yellow brick road. “Homesick” is more a neo-soul format with a Susanne Vega-style lead, and “Marilyn Whirlwind” jumps out at you with a rare lack of sensitivity but plenty more funk and electricity compared to the headswims Koze coaches.

File under: Swahimi, Apparat, Noze

Compilation Review: ‘This Is How We Roll’ (Keysound Recordings)

Matt Oliver Leave a Comment

This Is How We Roll Keysound Recordings

★★★★☆

From being steamrollered into submission by Keysound’s extra long collusion Keepers of the Light, last year’s forbidden family of dubstep shamen who burrowed further and further into bass recesses until it had to start digging up to see daylight again, This is How We Roll ripostes. Not coming up for air anytime soon either, 14 tracks snatch the incentive of leaving soundsystems and civilisations crumbling, in a rally of blade sharpening, buzzsaw ducking (Mumdance & Logos’ “In Reverse”), sludge-caked, Molotov sipping eliminators.

Dead of night techno mutants lie in wait, searing the sky with a string of bass torpedoes – bro-step, be gone, and post-dubstep, with Moleskin unable to tilt the balance all by himself, is vanquished by rat-a-tat aggressors. These are the dark arts spelt out and spilt by rebel, win-at-any-cost droids who also preach the eerily dogmatic, writing an urban grime-gothic that will hunt you down, even if their bulk seems against them.

The same old story? Though unrepentant, there’s a swagger able to make moves like a mega-weight gentleman thief. Authentic dub samples are hauled into the firing line (Samrai’s “Hear Me Now”), as spots of mischief try and distract you while grunting bass keeps lookout (Visionist’s rascal strings rifling through “Dangerous”). Electro clarification flows from E.m.m.a.’s “Peridot” and Fresh Paul’s “Blaster” smashes planets together while an orchestra chronicles the magnitude. Most of all, it’s a really easy collection to get into, providing instant rushes and razes.

File under: LHF, Chestplate, Tectonic