After hours grooving…
1. Rhythm and Sound – King In My Empire.
Possibly the defining track of my life. A bridge between worlds – between my home in Berlin, and Jamaica. A meditation on love, loss, rebuilding and faith. All this and more. A song for the times when nothing makes sense at all – or for moments when everything is entirely perfect.
2. Donny Hathaway – Someday We’ll All Be Free
There has never been a voice like Donny, and there probably will never be. Elegant, present, and utterly majestic. When Donny sings “take it from me, one day we’ll all be free” I believe him.
3. Sade – No Ordinary Love
I’d wager that half the babies in the electronic-musician universe have been conveived to this track. A timeless, endless, modal refrain. Sex, blood, love, loss, tears. It’s like a Rumi poem written in the 80s. Pop perfection, insistent and gorgeous as only Sade can deliver. She has me hovering a few metres above the earth every time this is played.
4. Ryuichi Sakamoto – Merry Christmas Mr Lawrence
Ryuchi remains a principle inspiration in everything I do. Elegant, restrained and poised – and yet somehow deeply sensual. A truly remarkable pianist and composer. A consumate minimalist, melting the icicles of the heart.
5. Keith Jarrett – The Köln Concert
More transcendent piano glory, with enough apocryphal stories attached to it to justify the price of admission! Swooning, ramshakle and at times perfect improvised piano. There’s such humanity to this recording, and so much playfulness. Gorgeous, unexpected.
6. The Smiths – There is a Light That Never Goes Out
I feel giddy listening to this. Weak at the knees. It reminds me of being 18 again – eyes wide open staring into the universe, full of possibility, fear, trembling and joy. “To die your side is such a heavenly way to die”
7. Seba and Lo Tek – So Long
This still sounds like the future to me, and perhaps always will. I remember hearing if for the first time probably around 1995, and feeling as if perhaps the only thing worth doing in my life was music. Listening, making, swimming in it.
8. Mos Def – Umi Says
I ain’t no perfect man, I’m trying to do the best that I can with what it is I have..
9. Burial – Archangel
Ghosts in the machine. Moments before sunrise. Urban stories. Unrequited love.
10. Common – The Light
At the end of every long night, the ghosts find their rest, and a new day begins. Even this stern techno DJ cannot resist the positivity and joy here. “There is a light that shines, special for you and me…”
Deepchild Black EP inc. Brodanse Remix (Danse Club)
Following on from recent widely applauded singles from Brodanse and Emerson Todd, exciting London label Danse Club Records presents the ‘Black EP’ from long time techno mainstay Deepchild. The EP comes with a remix by aforementioned label bosses Brodanse aka sibling duo Austen and Scott and is another trend setting release that looks to the future.
Deepchild has established himself over the years with a fine brand of dance floor focused house and techno on labels like Trapez, Thoughtless and many more and always nails a distinct groove. The Berlin based Aussie, also known for his live shows, does so again here with plenty of aplomb.
The title track opens the account with a whirring, machine driven tech house vibe that has a seductive groove, hooky female vocal cries and plenty of nocturnal spirit. It makes for a restless, unsettled vibe that keeps you on your toes and features plenty of well designed bell sounds off in the distance.
Next up, the bulky and essential ‘Garbij’ is a stripped out, rolling techno number with bold hits, oodles of well placed reverb and another vocal line that adds a sense of humanness to the dark grooves. Deepchild’s final original here is ‘Black Jesus’, a high pressure cut that piles up wobbly hits, scurrying drums and celestial, squared keys on top of each other, the result is a pleasingly intense and otherworldly track with a booming bottom end.
Brodanse remix this one in typically fine style: they layer in a dark vocal, increase the pressure of the drums and have the tough tech track rolling on unhindered. Its a heady, dancefloor focussed one for sure, with lots of percussive techno energy making it impossible to ignore for discerning dancers and DJs alike.
Just ahead of their 20th release, the Danse Club label has come correct once more with an EP that is sure to soundtrack many a night out in the coming weeks and months.
Black EP – Inc. Brodanse remix (Danse Club DCR019) Release Date: 16th Feb 2015
