After hours grooving…
One of my first records ever. Italo Disco + New Wave Electro. I still remember the shop where I bought this in ’83.
NO MORE – BLOOD AND FLOWERS Part. IV (VINYL-ON-DEMAND 1995)
Finally released after years, this short yet amazing Minimal Synth tune from one of the cult 80s German “New Wave Punk EBM” bands.
GIORGIO MORODER – UTOPIA – ME GIORGIO (OASIS 1977)
Taken from the “From Here To Eternity” album, this is one of the most relevant Eletronic Disco tunes.
SCHALTKREIS WASSERMANN – SPACE SHUTTLE (CBS 1981)
Epic Synth Electronica from Switzerland… Stella & PJ were absolute pioneers at that stage.
HARALD GROSSKOPF – OCEANHEART (SKY RECORDS 1986)
Essential Kosmische Music from one of the Ashra Tempel members that also had collaborations with Klaus Schulze. His “Synthesist” album is one of the most relevant albums released by Sky Records.
VIRGO FOUR – IN A VISION (TRAX RECORDS 1989)
Superb Deep Chicago House from the “golden edge”…Essential tune!
KLEIN & M.B.O. – DIRTY TALK (ZANZA 1983)
This tune influenced the beginning of the Chicago House Music: “Dirty Talk” is actually considered the only real Proto-House Italo Disco tune…. The Tune!
BAM BAM – WHERE’S YOUR CHILD ? (WESTBROOK RECORDS 1988)
Classic Deep Acid House.. One of the most interesting for me, especially for it’s groove.
S’EXPRESS – FUNKY KILLER (RHYTHM KING RECORDS 1988)
London Percussive and Kung-Fu oriented tune that can be compared to the sound of Renegade Soundwave & Depth Charge… Was one of my favourites in the late 80s….
HAPPEN D.J. – DON’T WASTE YOUR TIME (TRAPANS RECORDS 1984)
Nostalgic, mega rare “mid-tempo” tune from a close friend of mine….
The mood is simply easy and melodic, the vocals are quite “froggy” as some France collectors are used to saying, all classic elements of the Italo Disco movement…
(Opilec Music / Balance Recordings)
Back in July, Balance Recordings boss and deep house pioneer Chez Damier licensed three tracks from Opilec Music to release on vinyl on his own imprint. Now the Opilec Music label is digitally re-releasing the EP with a very special extra track, meaning that I-Robots, Jordan Fields, Federico Gandin and proto-house come Italo disco stalwarts Klein & M.B.O will all appear on the release.
First up is I-Robots – ‘Streets Of Dongguan’ (previously released on We Are Opilec…! Vol.II). This track is inspired and dedicated to Dongguan, Huang Jiang, a city in China where I-Robots has a second home and a daughter called Barbie. It’s a low-slung bit of house funk, with the organic pitter-patter of congas interacting with a dubby bass guitar riff. Over the top are vocals recorded in the street in Huhang Jiang in the summer 2012. The voice is a poor street seller trying to sell insect poisons whilst driving a bicycle and it is a subtle addition that has a big impact.
Next up is Jordan Fields with ‘Pink Lilies’ (taken from the forthcoming Jordan Fields album The Sound Of Chicago 1986-1991 – The Lost Trax, also on this label.) It is a lost track from the late 80s/early 90s and has a classic Dance Mania/Trax sound, with pinging drums and mournful synth lines coming together in raw house fashion.
Then comes Federico Gandin with ‘A Sonic Day On The Milky Way’ (which was first released on his debut album, Legion Of The Lost Dream). Derrick May is a big fan of the album and always plays tracks from it in his DJ sets, as well as recently including one track in his Heartbeat mix compilation. Also I-Robots included two Gandin tracks in his Movement Torino compilations.. The track is a dense bit of house with scattered drums and many different rhythmic elect’s from wooden sounding percussion to glowing synths and it really works listeners into a controlled frenzy in some style.
Finally, the extra special inclusion is Klein & M.B.O. – ‘Last Call’ (I-Robots Reconstruction Take II) which is taken from a forthcoming release that will also include another Reconstruction from I-Robots and an exclusive Gene Hunt Chicago remix as well as a Headman/Robi Insinna rework and the original and unreleased version. This I-Robots Reconstruction is inspired by the early Chicago house sound and comes with rough and ready drums, bleepy, heady melodies and plenty of thick, gravelly baselines. It’s a classic and sympathetic remix that nods its hat to house history at the same time as looking to the future.
Once again this is a carefully considered and hugely cultured package from the ever on point Opilec Music label that offers some essential sounds for fans of proper house music.
The artwork for this release is provided by talented Japanese artist Tamami Saito who is working alongside the label to provide unique covers for a selection of Opilec’s records.
1. I-Robots – Streets Of Dongguan
2. Jordan Fields – Pink Lilies 3. Federico Gandin – A Sonic Day On The Milky Way 4. Klein & M.B.O. – Last Call (I-Robots Reconstruction Take II)
I-ROBOTS present: THE BALANCE E.P. is out February 3rd 2014
Various Artists
I-Robots presents The Detroit People Mover E.P. ft. Rhythim Is Rhythim & Infiniti (Opilec Music)
I-Robots is an alias of Opilec Music boss Gianluca Pandullo, a long time DJ and producer with a penchant for classic techno and electro cosmic disco. For his next project in the esteemed I-Robots Reconstructions concept series the Italian re-edits some classic material, all with the permission of the original artists. The tracks in question are Derrick May’s hugely influential ‘Emanon’ cut, recorded under his Rhythim is Rhythim alias and originally released in the 1990s on his own seminal Transmat Records label – one of the most
important imprints in the early days of techno alongside KMS and Metroplex. The second track – which was first released on Metroplex, the label Juan Atkins founded in 1985 and then re-released and reworked on Night Vision – is ‘Game One’ produced by the legendary Juan Atkins and Orlando Voorn as Infiniti. The latter of these pair has already released a number of times on the Opilec Music label.
The inspiration for the title of the EP comes from the Detroit’s People Mover train – almost like a monorail from the future but with retro trains riding along it, the People Mover speeds people around the city and has done since the mid 60s in a fashion that brings to mind the futurism of techno in a perfect way.
The stunning ‘Emanon’ is first and the idea with both edits was simply to “keep the original vibes and just create a longer groovy version with a more DJ friendly sound that I love to use in my sets” says I-Robots. The results truly are sympathetic to the original while at the same time imbuing it with a fresh modern perspective. It’s a fantastically freestyle and deep electro tech track with plenty of machine soul. Moody synths form the backdrop of the track as scattered and loose percussion fills the foreground. Plenty of bite
comes from the pudding kick drums below and the way the track constantly twists and turns through a sci-fi galaxy makes it as essential and arresting now as it has ever been.
‘Game One’ is a much more streamlined but just as infectious track that bares the old school Detroit hallmarks of the 80s and 90s that are still so appealing today. Frantic percussion shimmers back and forth above jazzy hi hats and lively synths dance their dance in amongst it all. Hypnotic and seductive, this track is a classic piece of Detroit techno soul reworked with a live, freestyle “samba” inflected percussive groove all tastefully and masterfully carried out by I-Robots.
Two superb edits, then, that breath life into already classic material and will likely win both I-Robots and the original producers many new fans in the process. The vinyl release will be strictly limited to 500 copies and will feature artwork from Alan Oldham aka DJ T-1000 who originally designed for Transmat Records and Djax-Up-Beats.
A) Rhythim Is Rhythim a.k.a. Derrick May – Emanon (I-Robots Reconstruction Take II)
B) Infiniti a.k.a. Juan Atkins & Orlando Voorn – Game One (I-Robots Apito Reconstruction Take II)
I-Robots present The Detroit People Mover E.P. ft. Rhythim Is Rhythim & Infiniti is out now…
Soundcloud preview – http://soundcloud.com/i-robots/sets/detroit-people-mover