Dimi Wilson – 3 Moustache EP

Greek producer Dimi Wilson comes to Alex Arnout's Dogmatik Digital, and does so with some considerable panache.

What you get are four tracks, five mixes, all in a general vein of 'deep/tech house that's so now-sounding it almost hurts'. I mean that in a good way though, not in a sneery "ooh look at him being all hip" way! Musically the tracks are all tuff-ish and variously pulsing, throbbing, bouncy and shuffly, but where they REALLY vary – cos we're talking some fairly subtle distinctions there – is in the choice of accompanying vox.

Moustache features a chopped-up male R&B vocal, while Ice P uses a heavily-treated vocal from some rapper or other… yeah, I know who it sounds like it should be from the title but the voice is so distorted it's hard to tell who it is or what he's on about, except he says 'bitch' and 'nigga' a lot and generally sounds a bit irate. Never Looking Back has a hip-house style vocal, while Spanish Girl… well, that one's obvious.

But for all that, it's actually the Dub of Never Looking Back that's pushed this one to the top of the pile tonight. It's a sparse, pulsating monster of tech-fuelled deepness, tailormade for locked-on late-hours floors… and, most importantly, it's graced quite generously with pyow-pyow-pyow, Negro-esque space disco stabs.

And that's pretty much my favourite sound in the world, which makes this utterly essential in my book.

Out: This week

About: You can find Dogmatik on Soundcloud, on Facebook or at their own website.

Alex Arnout – Science Friction EP

Coming atcha on relatively new label Turquoise Blue (this is only their eighth release), here's some fine contemporary-style deep/tech bizniss from Dogmatik boss Alex Arnout, something of a 'scene veteran' these days and a producer who seldom disappoints.

It's a three-track affair. Science Friction itself is a throbbing and constantly evolving slice of tech-soul with added cosmic disco/sci-fi-style synths, Break The Flake is a more stripped-down and jackin' number with disembodied, heavily treated vox and plenty of sleazy 3am funk coursing through its veins, and finally This Way is a drummy workout, slightly wonky and off-kilter with more of those effected vox.

All three will do the damage on the hip underground floors but if pushed, it's the title cut that takes top honours for me.

Out: This week on vinyl, digitally from 20 August.

About: You can find Newcastle-based Turquoise Blue on Soundcloud and Facebook.

Various - The Illusion Family EP

Wow, is what I want to say to this one. For once a release that blows yer socks off the way you wish they all would!

Getting hold of the first release from any new label is always exciting anyway – you always have high hopes. But when it's got 11 tracks on it (so how this isn't an album, is beyond me), you do sort of worry that, y'know, have they just signed up a bunch of half-finished stuff by their mates?

No such worries. The names might not be ones you know, save for a few (Little Fritter, Alex Arnout, Seelie and Monoman should all be familiar, and one or two more ring a vague bell) but rest assured, the quality-o-meter is in the red always in this romp through the most underground of house pastures. Soul, garage and disco influences are evident throughout, but there's a contemporary, techy edge as well, meaning you can see tracks here working on all manner of house floors.

Highlights include Arnout's ludicrously funky bass-led Deliberate Thinking, the magnificently subby future garage of James Johnstone's I Get Lost, Seelie's Marlene Shaw-biting*  Sinner From The Ghetto, Little Fritter's just-like-the-old-days garage jam Peep Hole and, in particular, Johnny Wren's Get Your Body Moving, a jackin' deep house dancefloor cut with THE freaky-deekiest treated vocal… You SERIOUSLY need to hear the latter cut but to be fair, you could say that about most tracks here.

Getting sent records like this is the reason I do what I do, nuff said.

Out: This week

About: As I said before, this is the debut release from a brand spanking new imprint called Innercircle, sister label to the already-established Illusion Recordings. The latter can be found here here and here (website, Facebook, Soundcloud)

*I think

Alex Arnout – Sound-Byte EP

Have I used the word 'sumptous' yet today? No? Good, because I don't like to repeat myself and it's a word it'd be hard to describe Movements In Soul, the opening track here, without! Combining a classic smooth, soulful garage-y feel with a more contemporary chugging deep/tech-house backing, this is sheer class, and you need to go out and buy it immediately, basically.

And that's just the first track! Which then gets an equally high-quality refix from current hot property Laura Jones, who turns in a slightly tuffer, dubbier rendition complete with a tripped-out, beat-less breakdown in the middle. You also get three mixes of Give U, which in its original form is another soulfully-vocalled deep/tech number, and comes with a glitchier, techier Jeff K remix with a bubbling acid-style bassline, and an appropriately-titled Sweet Dub from Gwen Maze that's like bathing in sonic chocolate.

Superb and very now-sounding stuff from the now London-based Yorkshireman, who's also boss of Dogmatik Records.

Out: This week

About: This is only the fifth release from Newcastle-based Turquoise Blue, who can be found on Soundcloud and Facebook. First time they've featured on here but ones to watch, on this evidence!

Various - Fusic Vol 1

Launched earlier this year, Fuse London is the record label arm of the successful Fuse club night, which is at 93 Feet East on Brick Lane and promises "deeper shades of house and techno". Which gives you a pretty good idea of what to expect from this six-artist, six-track sampler EP… innit? (as they say in Shoreditch)

So yeah, six deep/tech house bombs are what's on offer here, and they'll get the cooler floors moving for sure. Ben Rau's The City and Alex Arnout & Seb Zito's Moments Of You stand out for me, but you're sure to have your own faves, with cuts featured also from Enzo Siragusa & Luke Miskelly, Jun Akimoto, Rich Nxt and Ittetsu.

Bit of lickety-split review this one cos, y'know, it's New Year's Eve. But yeah… this is quality stuff, making Fuse London another label I'll definitely be keeping an eye on in 2012.

Out: Last week, but again, it was too good to leave.

About: I've told you most of what I know about Fuse London… except that the aforesaid Mr Siragusa is resident at the club so I'm guessing the main man at the label as well. They don't seem to have an actual label website yet – that I can find anyway – but here's the one for the club night. And seeing as that doesn't actually tell you much, here's a write-up about 'em on Resident Advisor as well.