Although Detroit revivalism is presently en vogue, Europe’s techno artists have long drawn inspiration from the Motor City’s creative geniuses. Two hardcore enthusiasts, Chris Callahan and John J. Matze, have fused their love for America’s techno roots and their own spacious vision in their music as Duplex since 1997. The Rotterdam-based duo is perhaps the most underrated members of the Clone family, with several spots (including an album) in its catalog and those of its Djak-Up-Bitch and Frantic Flowers sub-labels. Though the pair has been relatively quiet since 2007, our 15th podcast, an exclusive hour of spectacular techno cuts, is about shatter that silence in fine fashion. We haven’t had a DJ mix on repeat for so long in ages, and we suspect this will keep you coming back for more, too.
Author Archive: Steve Mizek
Klockworks, Klockworks 04
[Klockworks] (buy vinyl) (buy mp3s) Since its launch in 2006, Ben Klock’s Klockworks label/series has been a reliable venue for the Berghain resident’s most Spartan, DJ-geared tracks. Each subsequent release contained fewer elements, a shrinking tonal palette and a singular focus on bone-crunching grooves. “Klockworks 04,” in kind, is perhaps the most utilitarian yet, almost […]
Talking Shop with Wagon Repair
This time we examine the Canadian-born Wagon Repair, which started as the home of pals Mathew Jonson, Konrad Black, Graham Boothby and Loose Change and has blossomed into one the most versatile and sought after labels in techno and house. Favoring quality sounds over particular aesthetics, WR boasts releases from The Mole, Tobias Freund, Seth Troxler, Deadbeat, Minilogue, Hrdvision and more. Mr. Jonson kindly answered our questions between gigs, shedding light on his favorite Wagon Repair release, the odd origins of the label name and the reason people love vinyl.
Christian Vance, Tiger Snake EP
Ripperton and Sam K’s label Perspectiv got its start in late 2006/early 2007, just as the former was approaching his peak popularity. The imprint pointed its new found limelight at a cast of relative unknowns like Minz, Ndru, Lucy, October and Dachshund, among others. But as Ripperton’s popularity waned post-Lazy Fat People, so did listeners’ appetite for his label’s fresh-faced selection and its singles have gone by mostly unnoticed. That’s a shame, because the end of 2008 was an especially fertile time for Perspectiv, which released a tasty platter from Dana Ruh (backed by an equally sumptuous Agnès remix) and Christian Vance’s debut, the “Tiger Snake EP.”
LWE Podcast 14: DJ Sprinkles
If house were a nation and LWE its president, Terre Thaemlitz is the first person we would look to when filling our cabinet. It would be difficult to decide where to put her, though, as his abundant talents make him perfect for many roles. As a top notch producer whose roots are tangled in the history of house, she’d make an excellent minister of culture; as a great thinker who elucidates hidden truths in media, gender, sexuality and our interactions with them all, he’d fit well as secretary of the interior of our heads. Midtown 120 Blues, his first album delivered under his disc jockey alias, DJ Sprinkles, brings these departments together, recontextualizing house music to the tune of sumptuous deep-house (easily nabbing the #3 spot in our top albums of 2008 list). So we’re very pleased to have Thaemlitz curating LWE’s 14th podcast, which is actually a live DJ mix from his Deeperama series.
LWE Podcast 13: Paul Frick
Trained in the discipline of classical music and well versed in jazz, Paul Frick leaped into the world of dance music with surprising ease, finding his senses and skills well attuned to its constant pulse and openly familiar structures. Offering both sharpened bits of his classical past (“Do Something EP”) and the inventive way forward (“Knock On Wood EP” featuring the stunning “Steal My Heart”) on his Kalk Pets releases and an adroit sense of construction which transformed Scott’s “Memory Core” into a deep-house groover, Frick’s music positions him as a burgeoning talent destined to make waves rather than swim with the tide. For LWE’s 13th podcast, the Berlin-based producer performed an exclusive live set drawn largely from unreleased and live-only tracks that has us wiggling with awed enthusiasm.
EQD, Equalized #002
[Equalized] In many ways, Equalized can only be discussed as two rubber stamped records, each carved with of a deep understanding of and flexibility with rhythm. The scope of sounds found on their four sides could point to a number of talented, Hardwax-affiliated producers, solo or in collaboration. While the A side of “Equalized #001” […]
John Roberts, Bodywork
Eyebrows raised and ears perked up when the close-knit Dial label added hitherto unknown, John Roberts, as the first American on its roster. “Hesitate,” his debut single that cobbled together deep-house movers from deftly manipulated samples and live instrumentation, did not disappoint. You could argue it was the most striking platter the imprint delivered in 2008 (in part because of a brief release schedule). All that in mind, anticipation and expectations for Roberts’ next release are high, and they’re likely to be met (and possibly exceeded) by “Bodywork,” his single-sided 12″ for John Daly’s Feel Music.
Talking Shopcast with echospace [detroit]
Welcome to the twelfth edition of our series of interviews and mixes affectionately titled Talking Shopcast. The majority of media and fan attention gets showered on the artists who create the music we love to listen to/DJ with/dance to, and for good reasons. But without the hard work, keen ears and business savvy of label […]
Agnes/Chaton/Ripperton, +91 Ahead Session 2
[Plak Records] Chaton, founder of Plak Records, has produced serviceable if spartan grooves for Sthmlaudio Recordings and his own label since they both debuted in 2001. I find his tracks are most ear-catching when they’re remixed, as they have been by Agnès (“Catch the Beat”) and now Ripperton. He constructs the canvas for others to […]
Little White Earbuds Interviews Cassy
When discussing her music, Berlin-based producer/DJ Cassy Britton admits she wanted to start “as simple as possible” to leave room for improvement and details as time went on. The simplicity tying together her productions for Perlon, Beatstreet, Uzuri, her own Cassy imprint and others is absolutely captivating, locking listeners into single-minded grooves too effective to […]
Matthew Styles, Speculate This…
Matthew Styles took the long road to acclaim before puncturing charts and year end lists with the propulsive grind of “We Said Nothing.” As a manager of Crosstown Rebels and well rated DJ, he was already plugged into the scene before dropping his first collaborative and solo releases (the ill-advised “Baby Judy” homage with Jamie Jones and for Dinky’s label Horizontal, respectively). Firsthand knowledge of floor-filling fillips honed his own productions such that his first real hit cratered clubs wherever it was played, even if the flipsides were all too easily overlooked. Style’s second Horizontal single, “Speculate This…” plays out with similar gusto, except the tables are turned: the deep B cut is the one worth skipping to.
LWE’s Top 10 Overlooked Tracks of 2008
For our second year end column, LWE’s editor-in-chief, Steve Mizek, digs up his top 10 overlooked tracks of 2008. Thousands upon thousands of tracks are released each year, followed by remix packages, online exclusives, reissues and more. So it’s inevitable that a number of great tunes and remixes get passed over, escaping even the most […]
DJ Sprinkles, Midtown 120 Blues
[Mule Musiq] Like disco before it, house music was born in queer club culture, one of the few places its artists and patrons — mostly gay minority men — could be themselves without fear of reprisal. And also like disco, house was co-opted by ever larger audiences, shedding its ethnicity and sexuality along the way. […]
The Mountain People, Mountain 006
[Mountain People] Since launching the Mountain People label to house his homage to The Mole People’s incredible “Break Night,” André (Rozzo and Peter Dildo) Schmid’s tracks under the moniker have gradually dried out, as he’s become a near teetotaler for melody. Considering how lush the imprint started (and was continued by Serafin and Roman Bruderer), […]
Talking Shop with Mojuba
Welcome to the eleventh edition of our series of short interviews affectionately titled Talking Shop. The majority of media and fan attention gets showered on the artists who create the music we love to listen to/DJ with/dance to, and for good reasons. But without the hard work, keen ears and business savvy of label staff, […]
Pépé Bradock, Pistes Insolites Vol. 3
[Atavisme] Underlying Pépé Bradock’s production genius is a vein of weirdness which has grown wider and more prominent at surface level with each passing year. Its influence in the direction and aesthetic of Bradock’s work was apparent even in his relatively straightforward French deep-house tracks from the 90’s, with a willingness to disengage from four-to-the-floor […]
Margaret Dygas, See You Around
[Non Standard Productions] For a producer who seems enthralled with a quintessential set of musicians and entertainers (as evinced by her top Myspace friends), Margaret Dygas’ latest release could hardly be further from the norms and standards of dance music. The Polish producer’s thorny and compellingly off-kilter debut for Contexterrior hinted at experimental instincts, and […]