[Dirt Crew Recordings]

Irishman Niall Mannion has charted a rapid ascension under his Mano Le Tough moniker, immediately impressing with his lovingly concocted blend of house, disco and techno on labels like District of Corruption, Mirau and Internasjonal. Adding Dirt Crew Recordings to that list with his Baby, Let’s Love 12 inch, Mannion furthers his reputation with mixes that cover the deep and techier ends of the house spectrum. Heading over to the Marvin Gaye collection for sample inspiration is a depressingly familiar trend for house producers, but Mannion at least takes only three words from “Let’s Get It On” that form the title of his track, foregoing the typical use of classic Marvin chords or the intro for “Got To Give It Up” which has appeared on more tracks than I care to count.

For the original mix, Mannion sets a subdued tone with the use of resonant, chiming bells, repeating the three words from Marvin like a mantra. Further layers of lilting percussion appear coupled with a bass line that spreads out like a thick layer of smooth peanut butter right to the edges. Iron Curtis keeps the tone of his mix suitably late night, strapping on a rotund Juno bass line and working some heavy, sloppy hi hats in to the fray. He also introduces slight chords that play off against spatial, weightless strings, though for all the weight that his tech house reinterpretation carries, it doesn’t quite match the quality set in the original mix. Jacob Korn’s take comes much closer to that quality, letting dust settle on the deep bells, keeping fragments of the marimba percussion but keeping the overall tone of the track even more restrained than the original. Mannion indulges his disco side on “Started Running,” working around a two beat guitar loop and a small thread of a vocal sample. The slow, winding bass line that he uses on the track at first doesn’t seem to be the best fit but as it plays out, the hybrid of disco and techno makes more sense. Where “Baby, Let’s Love” displayed layers of finesse and subtlety, “Started Running” is simplistic in comparison, but a pleasing floor track nonetheless. The digital only inclusion of an extra remix by Filipsson and Ulysses adds a modern take on disco, with the duo blasting off into deepest, most cosmic space. It makes a well rounded package of the release, which provides several stand-out moments and highlights a name to watch for in Mano Le Tough.