For a couple weeks now my friends and I have entertained ourselves on the cheap by playing stacks of 45s at 33, giving into the well worn truth that almost everything sounds better slowed down. Not surprisingly, producers reach for the technique regularly, whether to fit a sample into the groove or in efforts to impart an androgynous “soul” sound unachievable at full speed. On the off chance it’s done well, it can transform whole tracks into something worth hearing time and time again. David Keno tried his hand at the Slowed Vocal Slot Machine for “Upside Down” on his new EP; and while it’s certain to be popular I’m less sure about its playback value. Since bursting onto the scene in 2005, Berlin-based Keno has showered record store shelves with decent to passable minimal/zeitgeist house tracks on Kindisch, Keno Records and a host of other labels. Snatch001 arrives on Riva Starr’s recently launched Snatch! Records after “Upside Down” served as the pop star-sized DJ’s supposed secret weapon since late 2009.
The track leaves little to the imagination as to why he signed it: Diana Ross’ vocals from her own track of the same name drip with heavy pitch shifting, poured strategically over its clipped, big-room house frame and thrumming organ notes. Keno even allows some of the original instrumentation, though heavily gated, to bleed through. Compared with unsatisfying, staccato organ progressions these bits exude more compelling, textured tone color. Lashed together by a few ravey synth builds, “Upside Down” is tailor built for today’s macro club climate. In fact, it’s already been licensed as the first track on DJ Hell’s forthcoming CD Twelve compilation. It’s backed by “Wait For More,” a more refined version of the sampled house aesthetic he’s become known for. Cobbling together a few firm guitar plucks, funk bass notes and synth stabs masquerading as horns, Keno thickens the mid-range with grumbles and cutesy coos as he twiddles the synth’s filters for harder and wider hits. Having recently hooked my ears in a few DJ sets in spite of their hackneyed nature, I have to admit these tracks have a certain charm that works well enough in the mix — effective if more than a little overzealous. Underground audiences are unlikely to leave the store with a copy of Snatch001, but they might not wrinkle their noses when it comes over the PA — at least the first time.
