Category Archives: Let’s Dance!

Switched On – Defected presents Most Rated Ibiza 2019 (Defected)

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Various Artists – Defected presents Most Rated Ibiza 2019 (Defected)

reviewed by Ben Hogwood

What’s the story?

It has been another memorable summer for Defected. 2019 has seen their head Simon Dunmore and a collective of starry guests return for a third consecutive residency at Ibiza’s Eden club, and the label’s presence grows ever stronger on the island in their 20th year. Most Rated embodies that upward curve, with 30 excellent floor fillers.

What’s the music like?

Very, very good. There are two mixes here that make nearly two and a half hours of paradise for vocal house lovers. The choice moments arrive right from the first track of the first mix, Roberto Surace’s Joys, with its lifting of vocals from the Richard X & Kelis collaboration Finest Dreams. From there we can enjoy another superb Todd Edwards moment, Deeper presented in remix form by Gorgon City. As the momentum builds Riva Starr’s remix of G-Flame and KCC’s Heaven and Melba Moore’s My Heart Belongs To You (the Ferreck Dawn remix) double up effectively, before the piece de resistance of the first mix, Mattei & Omich & Nathan Nicholson’s superb track Doors, with its tagline ‘you close one door and another one opens’.

Finally the swirling strings of Cinthie’s Mesmerizing leave a mark…and if you’ve any sense you’ll head straight on to the second mix. Here Andreya Triana shines on vocal duties with The Vision’s Heaven, while Bless Me Toda from Alan Dixon adds a spiritual high. The music heads deeper with the Heller & Farley Project with Cevin Fisher, the Fire Island remix of We Built This House, and Dave & Sam’s Till The World Blow Up, featuring Mike Dunn. Dunn reappears with the bouncy If I Can’t Get Down, and there’s a similar spring in the step of Alaia & Gallo’s Trippin, featuring Dames Brown. It’s great to see Cassius present, remixing Oliver Dollar’s John’s Church, before the final winning double from Horse Meat Disco (Joey Negro’s remix of Falling Deep In Love) and one of The Shapeshifters’ very best tracks, Kimberly Davis powering the vocals for Life Is A Dancefloor.

Does it all work?

Emphatically so. Hands in the air, smiling faces and dancing feet are all symptoms of the Defected approach, and it transfers effortlessly to these two hot weather winners.

Is it recommended?

Yes, without question. Defected are riding the crest of a wave at the moment and this compilation sums up all the label’s qualities at the moment.

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Switched On – Cocoon Compilation S (Cocoon)

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Various Artists: Compilation S (Cocoon)

reviewed by Ben Hogwood

What’s the story?

Each year Cocoon release an additional ‘letter’ in their compilation series, which has incredibly reached its 20th instalment. Once again it is house music with a sound blend of experience and promise, presented in unmixed form. A dozen tracks with both eyes on the dancefloor.

What’s the music like?

As always with this series, consistency is the key, with quality intersections between house and techno – and a few big names delivering the goods.

Talaboman (John Talabot and Axel Boman) present one of the big draws in Big Room Anthemic Groovy Pounding Trance Dub Bomb. Music that delivers exactly what it promises! There is a superb track from Emmanuel Satie, Planet XXX offering a strong breakdown, while Mark Broom offers a lively, retrospective track with Jaded, its bell effects standing out. Edward’s End Days has a metallic edge, as does the more acidic Tering from Egbert, which brings a heady rush, but the one that burns brightest is Keep Changing Basslines from Dino Lenny. This is a brilliant collision of mood swings with the tag line ‘stay on the dancefloor’ the most memorable hook of the twelve.

Does it all work?

Yes, and in their 20th year it offers further proof of why Cocoon are at the top of their particular game. Sven Väth’s label has strength in depth, and a high quality threshold. Business as usual, in effect!

Is it recommended?

Yes – fans will know exactly what is in store here, a dozen tracks that push all the right dancefloor buttons. No need to hesitate for the converted or the new arrival.

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Switched On – Special Request: Vortex & Bedroom Tapes (Houndstooth)

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What’s the story?

Paul Woolford, the man behind Special Request, is releasing just the four new albums this year. In his description they were ‘made in his underpants’, and represent a clear wish to make instinctive music that gets to the listener as quickly as possible. This no frills approach is all about making incisive dance music that cuts to the quick, losing none of its energy to post-production.

What’s the music like?

Woolford gets a thrilling blend of old and new in his music, and the refreshing lack of studio gloss keeps the music strong and vital. There is something here for house heads, drum and bass and techno lovers alike, for he has a very unique approach to beat making. Nothing is conventional, yet his rate for hitting the sweet spot is unerring.

The key element of his approach is a love for the use of riffs and sounds harking back to the late 1980s, with electronic dance music still in its infancy and full of thrills and spills

Vortex has the quicker cut and thrust of the two albums. Memory Lake cuts to the quick, getting its raw shots of adrenalin through a killer beat and hook. Ardkore Dolphin takes the same rhythmic cell and presents it in different, thrilling ways. Vortex 150 then typifies Woolford’s approach, with beats that strain at the leash and a primal intensity that reflects the need to dance while capturing the thrill of early hardcore discoveries. Fett is even quicker – 175 beats per minute to be precise – before a flurry of synths and rapid fire drums for A Gargantuan Melting Face Floating Effortlessly Through The Stratosphere. The brilliant title itself pays homage to The Orb, but the rhythms are about three times the speed!

The lo-fi Bedroom Tapes is a bit slower but has a wider sound perspective, impressing with its expansive structures. Panaflex Sunrise is an opening beauty, a singular loop channeling the spirit of early Aphex Twin releases with its softer beat. Despite not grabbing the listener by the scruff of the neck like he does on Vortex, Woolford still finds a fiercely singular voice. Xenopsin is the biggest track – nearly 12 minutes – but arguably the best too, spacing out time as the riffs turn over, backed by a solid four to the floor beat. Phosphorescence is also very fine, a beautifully hazy construction of techno that delivers power but has a softer heart.

Does it work?

Wholeheartedly. These are albums three and four under the Special Request moniker, and as with the first two Woolford packs an original punch in his music that can be breathtaking. In it he finds raw, untempered sounds, wiry melodies and beats that can’t take you anywhere else but the dancefloor.

There is something for everyone here, from the mottled sunrise moments of Bedroom Tapes to the out and out thrills of the Vortex faster tracks.

Are they recommended?

Both albums are unreservedly recommended – and with Offworld next up at the end of September, part three beckons for what will surely be a clean sweep of Special Request winners.

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Switched On – Detroit Love 2 mixed by Carl Craig (Planet E / !K7)

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Various Artists: Detroit Love 2 mixed by Carl Craig (Planet E / !K7)

What’s the story?

The collaborative series between Carl Craig’s Planet E label and !K7 moves onto its second instalment, bringing the main man to the fore for a 90 minute mix honouring the techno traditions of his home city. He follows Stacey Pullen’s excellent series opener from last year.

What’s the music like?

Craig sets the bar high with the orchestral sounds of Kevin Saunderson and Virus J, their ‘World Of Deep’ gathering the troops with a big old blast of chords. From there a quick tempo is established and the good tunes flow naturally, with Detroit techno royalty in evidence. ‘Rosalie’ from Green Velvet makes an early impact, the bass creeping upwards against the acidic top line.

Octave One’s ‘Rock My Soul’ hits a sweet groove, as does the probing bass line of Wajeed’s ‘Power In Numbers’. The gospel flavours of ‘Calling Out Your Name’ follow, Sophie Lloyd backed by Robert Hood under his Floorplan alias – a typically big, smiley number from him.

Craig continues at quite a nippy tempo through the sparkly edged ‘Do It All Night’ of DJ Minx, blending perfectly in with Claude VonStroke’s ‘My Love Check’ before it. More highlights include the driven dub version of Mr. G’s ‘Lights’, Mirko Loko and Stacey Pullen achieving a big block breakdown with ‘Formulaic Mode’, and Craig later moving on to the booming voice of the ‘Boss’ man, courtesy of Brain.

Towards the end we hear a cracking rarity, the electro old school sounds of Rhythim Is Rhythim’s ‘It Is What It Is’, before another vintage revival in Ectomorph’s ‘Satori’. This ends the dance action, Craig signing off with the gritty garage blues sound of The Dirtbombs’ ‘Alleys Of Your Mind’.

Does it all work?

Yes. This is one of Craig’s more flowing mixes, and while that means it doesn’t necessarily push the genre boundaries as willingly as he has in the past, it does deliver a rollicking good time from Michigan.

Is it recommended?

Definitely. Detroit Love is shaping up to be a collectible series, and there are still many producers capable of adding their own homage to America’s first city of techno.

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Switched On – Balance presents Sunstrip mixed by Hernán Cattáneo

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Various Artists: Balance presents Sunstrip mixed by Hernán Cattáneo (Balance)

What’s the story?

Argentine DJ Hernán Cattáneo links up with the Australian label Balance once again, returning to the double-set format for the first time in two years. His two mixes clock in at over two and half hours, focusing mostly on the deeper side of house music but with plenty of room for development.

What’s the music like?

In a word, consistent. The first three minutes of Cattáneo’s first mix set out a dreamy picture before the appearance of a reassuringly strong kick drum to get things going. Mariana Mellino & Interaxxis’ ‘Andromeda’ offers a sign of the steady tightening of intensity the Argentinian does so well, and we move smoothly through nice squiggles from Juan Hansen’s ‘Hiding Sun’, which hits a peak with some Depeche Mode-like vocals.

The mix presses on with the warm and fuzzy combination of the Kevin Di Serna tracks ‘4 Meditation’, which has a lovely sweep through space in its breakdown, and ‘System Era’ works well. Fellow countrymen Soundexile offer two tracks together, ‘Glide’ seguing effortlessly into the classy ‘Stimulation’, a lovely easy groove, before Cattáneo finishes part one with a curveball, Mercurio’s cover of Jefferson Airplane’s ‘White Rabbit’ sung by Anita Alvarez de Toledo.

The second mix is immediately more urgent, and gets off to a great start with Mike Griego feat. Paula Os and ‘Headspace’. The tempo is quicker and the percussion up a gear, as though the sun has set and we are heading into the night. The powerful sweep of ‘Dissolved In You’ by Brian Cid carries all before it, the producer reappearing later with the brooding ‘Rebirth’. Cid Inc – no relation – impresses with the shimmering textures of ‘Forgotten’, while there is an unexpected but welcome cover of The Cure’s ‘A Forest’ from COLLE. Finally Soundexile return with Wind Down (Outro Mix), the lights going up as the mix fades into the distance.

Does it all work?

Effortlessly so, thanks to Cattáneo’s experienced head. The pacing of each mix is spot on, the peaks and breakdowns expertly managed, while the beats and harmonic structure are spot on. The cover of ‘White Rabbit’ might split opinion but this is an extremely solid selection.

Is it recommended?

Yes. Cattáneo has built up great judgement on how to pace a commercial mix, and his instincts are sound here. Consistency is the key throughout!

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You can get this album from Beatport here