Deep House Recommendations March 2010

Review: Gaining more and more fans by the minute, Jay Shepheard has built on his early deep house releases for Compost Black and now drops the forst EP on his own Retrofit imprint. There's absolutely no filler here at all - all four tracks will bring something special to DJs and fans alike. Highlights include "A Marys Piper," which switches up drum tracks brilliantly, and "End of Part One" which stays deep but also brings a low-slung funkiness into the mix, along with some positively seedy string synths to boot. Here's hoping there'll be many more Retrofit releases to come.

Review: Some classic stuff here from German/American duo Chubby Dubz, who've created a rich collection of three indispensable new tunes for Ornate Music. As with all the songs, a deeper-than-Barry White vocal floats over the top, gently narrating while the deep house grooves develop beautifully. The arrangements are pitch perfect, with sounds never over complicated or over used, while the warm drums keep the rhythm locked. While the Chubs are obviously aware of their house history, songs like "Turn Around" still sound contemporary. Definitely one for fans of Motor City Drum Ensemble - highly recommended

Review: Theo Parrish has green-lit a couple of back catalogue reissues from his Sound Signature label this month and this one originally came back in 2010 and found him on production duties and Bilal Love on the vocals. The Melloghettomental EP is an archetype Parrish offering - dusty, lo-fi beatdown and house fusions with muted but meaningful chords and aching vocal hooks. You get all that on blissed-out opener 'Can't Keep Running Away', superbly soulful live bass work on 'U Bring Me Up' and heavier, more griding grooves but still sublime vocals on 'Why Wait'. The title cut is an off-grid mix of sci-fi melodies and diffuse chords, shimmering drums and low slub bass. Sublime.

Review: The unique thing about Omar S's music is that no matter how much later you listen to it after its initial release, it still sounds mad futuristic. His dusty grooves and otherworldly synth sounds take on many different forms and atmospheres and for this one back in 2010 it was all about occult cosmic worlds. 'Kosmos 1402' has rickety kicks and hits that spit and fizz with grit and grime, while 'Plesetsk Cosmodrome' then sinks into deep astral worlds with rubbery bass bouncing beneath warped pads and 'Skynet 2 B' has a more playful feel with cute chords and a nice skipping rhythm.

Review: Tevo Howard stands alone in his ability to make true Chicago house music that keeps the feel of the original sounds of the city but adds a fresh and contemporary edge. After the success of his HHYR debut, "Move," he returns to the label with "Crystal Republic," a six track exploration through warm, deep and emotive Chicago house music.


The title track is hypnotic and dipped in melancholy yet still drenched in beautiful melodies. "Laboratory" and "The Glass Ceiling" are more energetic, the latter of which utilising an uptempo jacking beat but still retaining the emotion that is ever present on the release. "Material" has crisp, acid basslines that linger above brooding undertones as the track embarks along a detailed journey through clever arrangement. More raw and rugged however, is "Data." First there is a relentless jacking version before finishing with an extended version, as hypnotic as it is all enticing.


Although this release is clearly heavily inspired by the original sounds of Chicago house music, Howard's crisp productions give them a fresh vibe that is very much of today. Full of emotion and depth, each track is like a journey through the past but ending up in the present.

Review: Dutch electronic institute Rush Hour unleash the second and final Voyage Direct remix EP. Keeping their local sentiment, all four featured remixers come straight out of the label's Amsterdam base.
Aardvarck, Boris Werner, San Proper and Sotu The Traveler deliver a diverse set of mixes that continue to retain the interest in Tom Trago's debut album. Following a string of acclaimed singles over three years, April 2009 saw the release of the hot Amsterdam producer’s debut album. Turning heads instantly, the album was a hit and was followed up with a remix EP in August last year. Earlier this year, we saw the release of the Live Takes and now the final instalment drops to round off what has been a highly successful Voyage Direct campaign for Tom Trago. Opening the EP, Boris Werner provides a latin infected house version of "Lost in the Streets of NYC." With shades of disco, the rework has an airy quality to, induced by an intricately delicate piano pattern. A flowing groove keeps the rest of the track grounded as the other components drift off in a dream-like trance. Famed for his distorted dupstep-techno crossovers, Ardvarck hands in a tough electrodisco version of "On the Side." Roughed up kicks combine with Soundstream-style string edits. Highly energised and full of power, the track is roughened up in Ardvarck’s trademark Cult Copy style. San Proper ‘s "Use Me" remix sees disco looping edits, acidic synthbass merging with a Detroit feel before Sotu the Traveller closes the release with his hybrid of dupstep and electrohouse on his interpretation of "Voyage Direct." As the long journey of his Voyage Direct draws to a close, Tom Trago will no doubt look back with starry eyes. Stretching the output from the album to the max but always maintaining the quality, he could have surely never imagined the ride would be this long and prosperous.

Review: Belgium's Vernon Bara and Massimo DaCosta met in a record shop in their native country's city of Mons back in 2000. Ever since, they have teamed up to release their own original productions that express their combined love of house music. A decade on from that meeting, the duo are still making music together and "Nightshift" serves as a timely reminder of their potential for making dancefloor friendly house tracks.

Having been staple fixtures on Belgium's house scene throughout the last fifteen years, the guys have played high profile events such as Groove City, 10 Days Off and Stereo Sushi. Earning themselves a reputation among house heads, they have also been brought over to play in New York, Chicago, Miami, London, Berlin, Barcelona, Oslo and Amsterdam. Their productions over the years have also proved to be popular amongst DJs such as Luciano, Ricardo Villalobos, Laurient Garnier, DJ Sneak, Derrick Carter, Roger Sanchez and label mates Phil Weeks and Mark Farina. Their ability to combine cold electronic grooves with a warm soul has been a major factor in this popularity. This EP's title track is a classic example. "Nightshift" is a bouncy, 120 bpm affair, filled with clattering high hats, punchy drums and a somber vocal. "Push It" is classic deep house with a Parisian feel to it where as "Never Surprised" has big chords and chunky breaks. The EP's opener "Do It Again" is a peak-time dancefloor monster, as relentless as it is danceable.

"Nightshift EP" continues the relationship between Vernon & DaCosta and French label Robsoul. A dedication to quality house music is the common factor here and neither party disappoints here. House music for running to dancefloor in the wee hours of the night here!