Props to Total Science for striking out in new directions, but Simple Man’s meaty, growling one-two step just doesn’t get me hot and bothered. New Zealand duo Bulletproof turns out some quality tech stuff on the flip, eking out a tightly wound tronik roller with epic touches in a Bad Company vein.
Various Artists Kushti Kutz Vol. 1
A beautiful and catchy fusion of UK garage’s Todd-influenced bump ‘n’ flex with some newer and ruffer bass-pumping thrown in. A chugging 4/4 with loopy bass gets carved up by coochie-rubbing piano stabs and “oohs,” and a tastefully whispered “Fantasy…” sample. Fans of early Tuff Jam stuff will rinse this one. Kushti!
Top Buzz Living in Darkness Rmxs
Modern-day drum ‘n’ bassists attack Top Buzz’s 1992 rave classic “Living in Darkness.” Urban Takeover’s Mulder turns in his usual jumpy bits, but the tear-out award goes to Rascal & Klone, whose much-anticipated version preserves the alluring trumpets and dramatic buildup of the original, and channels them into a charging dark roller after the drop.
Pieter K Rapport
Pieter K’s already displayed his talent at complex drumwork, but he dabbles further into melody on “Rapport”-experimental, deep headphone business with a melancholic feel. The flipside’s “Nexus” is like Drexciya gone d&b, all bubbling underwater electro bleeps, crunchy glitch sounds and hairpin turns.
Dillinja Live or Die
The flipside’s “South Manz,” with its “bassline roller to shake the venue” sample and scary, high-pitched melody, is my favorite here, as Dillinja delivers a more rolled-out track that’s still heavy on the bass & drum. “Live or Die” is classic Karl-an Amen rinse-out with plenty of guts ‘n’ glory. Bashy!
Mike Shannon Slight of Hand
While most heads have been looking to Germany, England or America’s West Coast for tech-house Holy Grails the last few years, Canada quietly bloomed into a superpower in its own right. Force Inc. documented one Canuck city’s distinctive interpretation of the genre in 2002 with the outstanding Montreal Smoked Meat comp, on which the now Toronto-based Mike Shannon appeared. As a veteran DJ, Shannon knows what moves asses on dance floors, but he’s also attuned to the importance of variety, adorning each of his debut album’s 11 untitled tracks with a different palette of twitchy rhythmic tics, trippy reverb and peculiar percussive accessorizing. Slight Of Hand abounds with the sort of obliquely odd and hypnotic tech-house that knowledgeable jocks will drop when they want to take dancers deeper into the mind-fuck zone.
Nobukaza Takemura 10th
Throughout his prolific career, Takemura has dexterously juggled the experimental and the accessible. The tension he’s wrought between coolly calculated DSP chaos and melodious songcraft has usually resulted in rewarding, if bipolar albums like 1999’s Scope and 2001’s Hoshi No Koe. Heretofore, Takemura’s childlike melodies flirted with cuteness without causing nausea. On 10th, however, he over-sugars his aural pastries. Blame his reliance on speech-synthe, a vocoder-like device that helps the disabled to speak to their caregivers. While the vocals here flow with a unique cadence, their effect over 78 minutes is initially as ludicrous as death metal’s Cookie Monster gutturals, and finally as annoying as Barney the Dinosaur. It’s a shame, because Takemura’s lushly exotic production, memorable pastel tunes, and dazzling prog-rock deviations can’t overcome the cloying gimmickry of those synthetic voices.
Dwayne Sodahberk Don’t Want to Know You
This Swedish producer’s debut album establishes him as one of Tigerbeat6’s brightest stars. While he’s supplied music for Absolut Vodka and Saab ads, Sodahberk sounds anything but commercial on Don’t Want To Know You‘s 17 tracks. After unleashing some DSP heckler spray on the opening cut, Sodahberk shifts into a killer hip-hop groove that’s as heavy as Dälek, as metallic as mid-period Autechre and as hypnotically tuneful as Wu-Tang Clan. Besides flaunting a surprising funkiness that recalls British masters like Cylob and Si Begg, Sodahberk likes to weave post-rock guitar textures into his digitized noise-clusters. Elsewhere, he angles for a spot on Clicks & Cuts 4 and tries to beat Herbert at his own quirk-house game. He may not want to know you, but you ought to know Sodahberk.
Stewart Walker Degenerate EP
Five years after his first release, American producer Walker keeps putting out some of the most personable, honest-sounding techno you will ever hear. These four minimalist cuts range from moody, mutant 2-step to dubby chill; in each, Walker offers mysterious little crevices just wide enough to crawl into and watch the lights dance in the sky. Remarkable.
Tech Itch Destiny
Your man Mark Caro brings on the sixth installment for his Tech Itch sister label, and it’s a big, bad one. The title track comprises a dark, well-produced, sci-fi roller with broad bass, scritchy keys and a good amount of acid bleep. The flip, “Contaminate,” shifts rhythms like there’s no tomorrow, offering a compelling challenge to the d&b formula. Ace.
