Archive for the ‘Reviews’ Category

Last weekend i went to visit this great festival again, taking place in the Westfalenpark of the city of Dortmund, where this year’s very successful Loveparade was held. Due to organizational trouble (LP was only two weeks ago) Juicy Beats promoters even had to cancel and re-book various acts. Nevertheless the line-up was as good and versatile as it has ever been. Which means you had the chance to choose between 14 floors, each one adressing a different style, from hip hop over dancehall, funk and jazz to eletronic and techno. That is the actually the idea behind Juicy Beats, covering a good range of music, bringing loads of different people together and represent the quality and versatility of contemporary music.

Even though the weather was to become quite rainy nobody seemed to hesitate about coming, so the park was as filled as every year. There was however lots of space, and even in the evening when places got crowded, you always had enough room for dancing (and breathing). (more…)

It’s been a while since my last entry but i thought this news would definitely be worth a post. As reported in there most recent newsletter, New Zealand’s finest Funk/Reggae/Soul group are dropping a new album in July. I’ve already been a big fan of their studio debut »Based On A True Story«, which was packed with beautiful songs and ballads. It has put a whole lot of good memories in my mind, in large parts i would say due to the distinctive voice of Dallas Tamaira aka Joe Dukie. The first single »The Camel« will be released the 21st of july. And for the lucky ones (in mostly France and the UK), FFD are touring Europe in late 2008…

FFD Tour Guide 2008

Heads up, maestro of electronic music is doing a record on Dixon’s Innervisions label.As reported by the label boss himself in his recent Under The Gun on RA he signed one of the tracks instantly as Laurent Garnier dropped it at a party at Berlin’s Panoramabar. That’s also where its name originates. “Panoramix” is the name of the b-side, a weird psychedelic groover. I’m not sure if this should be called house or techno, it’s actually somewhere in between but should definitely work fine sometime after midnight, when the crowd is already drenched in sweat. The other side covers the housy side of things, with a warm groove and a more punchy rhythm, but it’s nevertheless equipped with the same bizarreness. To be dropped on 19th May and I’m sure this is gonna cause quite a stir…

www.innercityvisions.com

… you might already be well aware of the fact that there will be an extended re-edition of their album “Moon Safari” very soon. For those who don’t know, the 2 million seller will soon be available as a CD/DVD package including several bonus tracks and videos. While disc one covers the entire original album, disc two is filled with some of their remixes, rarities and demo sessions recorded during the late nineties and disc three providing a 60 minute documentary and video clips of the album’s most popular tracks. Release date is determined as the 15th April. I think this might be worth a blog entry, as I’m going to purchase this.

www.myspace.com/intairnet

… is almost impossible, regarding the vast amount of tracks and remixes this guy has done in his more than 20-years spanning musical career. Nevertheless does his most recent release on !K7 called “Sessions” cover a whole bunch of it, including stuff under his Paperclip People and Innerzone Orchestra disguises as well as the grammy nominated Junior Boys remix of “Like A Child”. And after listening a few times i have to conclude that there is not even a bad track on here, just about every track has this special Craig touch to it. Very well and carefully selected compilation. Big ups not only to C2 but also to !K7 who very continously provide us with some of the best quality electronic music there is on the market. Get your hands on this, here are some additional links:

!K7 Records
Carl Craig on Myspace
Planet E Records

If you’re someone who tunes into radio shows every now and then you have probably heard of the Deeper Shades Of House Radio show on XM Radio - The Move. This weekly quality broadcast of finest deep house music is hosted by Lars Behrenroth who does now raise his musical brand to higher level by - almost logically - launching his very own label.

The first release comes from his buddy and only Deeper Shades resident Jojo Flores and Joe DiPadova. And the title “Yes Smoke” already kind of reveals the ambience of the track: Very lush, clubby, percussion driven, and - hell yeah - SMOKY madness. Definitely the type of music i want to hear in the club. The track can already be purchased on Traxsource or of course on the Deeper Shades site itself. Looking forward to see more stuff like this coming up there in the future.

www.deepershadesrecordings.com

… and with this in your box you can probably not go wrong when it comes to making the crowd go wild. Three stunning tracks by Milton Jackson, Square One and Manuel Tur, each very successfull appraoches on creating outstanding clubtunes.

My favourite is Manuel Tur’s “Boxed Rivers” but as i said you can’t go wrong with any of the tracks. Very well selected deep house / tech house quality. I will be curious about what part 2 has to offer… (more…)

London’s rising artist Aaron Jerome has recently released his debut album and whatever genre this may fall into (probably something in between Nu-Jazz, Contemporary Soul and World Music), this stuff just makes me feel good. Simply good music to listen and (in parts) dance to.

I first got in touch with Aaron’s stuff while browsing through some laid-back dj mixes over at Red Bull Music Academy Radio. I found his Train Wreck mix which also includes some stuff from his LP and i just couldn’t stop (more…)