[Honest Jon’s]

Last year Honest Jon’s issued some pretty incredible records. Actress’ Splazsh and T++’s Wireless (along with the very strong live album from the Moritz von Oswald Trio) were among the most important of 2011 in many dance music circles, but the most unexpected treat came through Honest Jon’s by way of South Africa’s Limpopo province and the studio of one Nozinja (Richard Hlungwani). The music contained on Shangaan Electro: New Wave Dance Music From South Africa was unlike anything many of us in the west had ever heard: very traditional south African music electronically produced at breakneck speeds, with marimbas banging up and down like a Steve Reich composition on meth. Honest Jon’s have drafted in the A-team on remix duties, and Mark Ernestus is first up to the plate with the results of his stunning meeting with BBC.

“Mark Ernestus Meets BBC” uses bits of BBC’s “Ngunyuta Dance,” but is really its own beast: a reduced, dubby house trip that basically inverts the energy found in Shangaan into a languid crawl. It doesn’t go anywhere, which is precisely the point, as once locked in it’s doubtful you’ll ever want to leave. The melodies unfurl slowly while the simplest of house grooves ticks on in the background, lulling and vibrant at the same time. In some ways this is exactly what you would expect from Ernestus, but while it might be Rhythm and Sound in mood, it’s quite removed from dub techno sonically. True to form, Ernestus includes a proper version for even further spacing out, with only delayed dub chords and fading melodies taking part. It’s not often that material from Ernestus sees release; indeed, his release rate has slowed to a trickle in comparison to Basic Channel partner Moritz von Oswald’s. This only makes each transmission that much more special, and Mark Ernestus Meets BBC is most certainly a special release.