Archive for January, 2012
Stop by the shop around 5pm today to get an advance listen to Gramaphone Podcast #2 from Hakim Murphy as he mixes up some of his favourites for a special in-store set. For a preview of his productions, check out our reviews of his recent work: Vanguard Sound Vol 2., Dogs & Flies, Moonbeam Express, [ READ MORE ]
The rough, loosely tumbling sample collage house music of Gerry Read continues to hit its stride with this 12″, his first of 2012 and third on Fourth Wave. He has his own distinctive take, landing somewhere between between Falty DL’s barely restrained R&B chaos and Losoul’s slowly revolving lumpy house. It’s revved up and optimized [ READ MORE ]
Since the inception of Reel People, a musical union formed by Oli Lazarus and Mike Patto in the early 2000′s, they have supplied a grateful fan base with nothing short of musical miracles, incorporating the vocal stylings of Dyanna Fearon, Vanessa Freeman and Angela Johnson, to name a few. Reel Peoples material is deliberately emblematic [ READ MORE ]
It’s unclear how to categorize this, it’s a new pressing of older tracks, but they have never been on a record together before, so it’s not exactly a classic, nor a reissue, but it’s certainly not a new record either. Together at last, Autechre and AFX (aka The Aphex Twin, Richard D James) on the [ READ MORE ]
In 1994 Boo Williams hit the scene with his debut release on Relief Records. Since then the Chicago native has played a pivotal role as part of the city’s second wave of house music. This re-release of his 1996 album “Home Town Chicago” on Anotherday Records is great evidence as to why he became so [ READ MORE ]
More music here courtesy of Rush Hour’s “Resurrection” of Ace and The Sandman aka Eric Lewis and Merwyn Sanders aka Virgo Four. Pressed on glass-clear vinyl, both tracks here seem to be total re-imaginings of the Virgo Four originals. Capracara & Scott Fraser take on Lites Go Out, according to Rush Hour’s website the cover was recorded in [ READ MORE ]
Originally released in 1993 “Forever Monna” became a classic deep house track as it stripped off all the disco influence in favor of a more smooth, thumping electronic sound. It is also a collaboration that showcases its creator’s home sounds combining Chez’s classic Chicago funk and Pullen’s smooth Detroit electronic stylings. Regardless of its original [ READ MORE ]
This Nangka 12″ marks the opening of Tony Ollivierra‘s new Northside District imprint (more info available on the label’s facebook page.) Not to be confused with his brother, Neil Ollivierra of The Detroit Escalator Co., Tony Ollivierra has recorded eponymously for the Dynamite Soul label and more extensively under the Ibex moniker for Planet E, Rush Hour, [ READ MORE ]
I’ve had a copy of “Prepare To Energize” by Torch Song on I.R.S. for many years and every time I play it for a younger audience they go crazy and inquire as to its origin. It seems whomever is behind these completely anonymous Eros records knows what’s up too. This second volume of Eros edits [ READ MORE ]
A placid, almost drifting release, even by Tevo Howard‘s standards, The Drapes In The Living Room introduces Howard down under on the Australian-based Thug Records. The A side tracks have a slow, continuous lethargy to them, the bigger washes of melody on the B side lend the second pair of songs a compellingly warm liveliness. [ READ MORE ]
The trio that makes up Pittsburgh Track Authority has been gaining steam via releases on Uzuri, Further, Love What You Feel, and now their eponymous Pittsburgh Tracks imprint. To begin the label-launching EP, they open with an untitled track that drifts between an agitated arpeggio reminiscent of Chicago Skyway or Tevo Howard and freestyle synth riffing [ READ MORE ]
I’ll be mixing my follow-up to the Gramaphonemx 2010 this evening in the shop (2843 N Clark), starting around 7pm. Come by and say hello[ READ MORE ]
Opening with what sounds suspiciously like a daring re-cut of Bob James’ Nautilus, G Marcell contributes one of the standout tracks so far for Plan B’s rugged and raw Vanguard Sound series. This, the second installment, again features Chicago’s own Hakim Murphy along with label regulars DJ Spider and Dakini 9. G Marcell’s aforementioned Renegade [ READ MORE ]
At the leisurely pace of 2 releases per year, The Secret Initiative has put out their fourth entry to close out 2011. On transparent blue vinyl, there are a pair of weighty, ominous, metallic techno cuts with massive clanks that reverberate through the darkness, certainly an appeal to the warehouse aesthetic. Both in terms of [ READ MORE ]
Maybe it’s imagined, but there’s something about the tracks here that feels distinctively British. As much as they’re all quite within the realm of contemporary techno, there’s a certain cheerless frustrated energy in the detailed high-end of Tom Dicicco’s opening cut, and likewise for the static energy he has flitting around the top of his remix [ READ MORE ]
Second release from Richard Zepezauer’s promising Nsyde imprint comes from Detroit-based beatdown artist Kevin Reynolds. While he only releases sporadically, Reynolds’ music always demands full attention. In the case of Liaisons, the title track trundles along with a lopsided tumbling bass motif until the beatific roller-rink chime melody lightens the mood. On the reprise of [ READ MORE ]
A good friend turned me on to the Belgian under-the-radar Other Heights imprint, which has been curating some high quality for just over a year now. Here they present newcomer and apparent Burial disciple Ghostek, who supplies one solo track and a remix, along with a pair of collaborative works with the very talented Roof [ READ MORE ]
Tonight Gramaphone blog’s Adulture is hosting a birthday party at Smartbar, along with Gramaphone’s Michael Serafini, Smartbar’s Kid Color and special guests Jake + Andrew. Cover is 2$ (free with student ID) and they’ll be playing disco and disco-influenced tunes till 4am[ READ MORE ]
With Radio Slide, Santiago Salazar records his second release under the Seldom Seen alias. His first was on Underground Resistance in 2004, and as the subtitle for this 12″ indicates, this is a kind of short anthology of what he’s been up to in the interim. These are funky, feverish, and a bit unhinged, the loose [ READ MORE ]
Swiss born Londoner Radovan Scasascia (aka Secondo) has always dabbled in various genres and styles. Here on What About Never he launches the label with some techy house stylings. Both untitled tracks feature driving beats and some sparse disco sampling and fills. The A side is a bit more disco oriented while the B side [ READ MORE ]