premiere

When OFF Recordings was in the midst of celebrating its fifth anniversary, label boss/producer extraordinaire Andre Crom told us his goal for his label has always been to release excellent, uncompromising house music. Two years later the imprint’s sound continues to evolve in exciting and unexpectedly new directions. Case in point is Melokolektiv’s Blame EP set for release on February 15. The Frenchman, who has co-released tracks on Crosstown Rebels, Get Physical and Kindisch and is now working solo, presents three killer tech-house tracks and a brilliant remix of “Children Of Alep” created by Scottish low-end specialist Sei A. We’re pleased to world premiere the hypnotically deep title track that’s already received support from mega jocks including NYC hard and soul progenitor Danny Tenaglia. Go hit the play button below and soak up a track crafted by a producer who has found his creative stride.

After beginning his musical journey in drum ‘n’ bass and hip-hop, Jena, Germany’s Douglas Greed (a.k.a. Mario Willms) gravitated toward house and techno.

His production work first caught our ear back in 2013 when we heard his bad-ass cut “Raw & Order” on The Gym’s Muscle Tuff label compilation. He went on to release acclaimed singles and albums on a variety of respected labels (Kompakt, BPitch Control, Infiné and Freude Am Tanzen) and has flipped the script in a meaningful way with each release.

Greed brings his vast talent to Shir Khan’s Exploited Records for the first time on “Guilty,” an utterly sublime two-tracker. We’re thrilled to world premiere the techy title track brandishing an emotive groove that subtly coaxes you into a state of somber euphoria.

“I made this track — or rather the sketch for this track — on a long train ride which took me almost through all of Germany on a south to north route from one gig to another,” he tells us.  o”The time flew by — even though it was an almost seven-hour trip. I was just nodding my head and got caught in one of those special moments that I even forgot to pay for my coffee in the train restaurant. That’s why it’s called ‘Guilty.'”

Douglas Greed’s “Guilty” is released February 15 on Exploited.

When we recently premiered the weird, wondrous kaleidoscopic music video for Tsaik’s “Tehraj,” we knew the emerging Chicago duo comprised of Jacob McArthur and Joshua Ruffle had plenty more gleefully glitchy twists and turns to offer. Boy were we right. On “IO,” which is the second single from their forthcoming Lemon debut album out in March on UK-based Lost Tribe Records, the pair present a lush downtempo masterpiece made up of gentle guitar phrasings and vocals, airy pads and found sounds. Listen to “IO” below and find out why we’re pretty damn excited about Tsaik’s upcoming debut LP.

Years of writing and collaborating with other artists eventually empowered Stockholm-based singer Andreas Britton Cavaco and drummer/producer Tim Lundblad to form Newtimers. Influenced by Prince to DeBarge, they brandish a soulful sound that meshes elements of R&B, electro and pop with electronic music.

We’re thrilled to world premiere the Deja Peach Remix of their highly infectious recent single, “Perfect Ten.” Andreas’ heartfelt vocals soar over Tim’s delicate, head-nodding groove, elegant instrumentation and sublime percussion. You want sexy ’80s vibes? Hit the play button below and soak ’em up.