Stefan Cordery – Incorporated

This WAS gonna go in the 'So many tunes…' round-up, but the four mixes are just too different, and too good in their own ways, for it not to get a full review.

Stefan Cordery is the man at the helm: his original version of Incorporated is an atmospheric tech-house chugger with that minimal-style trick of layering lots of scratchy, high-end sounds. Carlo Galliani's rub adds some stripped-down bass throb and brain-frying disco stabs for the 3am strobelit floors, while Ken Rok strips things right back to a minimal/deep techno pulse. And I'm liking all three mixes to be fair, especially Galliani's.

But it's the no-nonsense Mario Conte & Fabio SPZZ1 rub I'm loving best: it's the kind of muscular disco-techno that makes me think of Vague or early-doors Trade back in the day. Shirts optional.

Out: This week

About: This comes on London's Menomale Records, who can be found on Soundcloud, Facebook or at their own website.

ALBUM Matthias Tanzmann – Remixes 2002-2012

DC10 regular Matthias Tanzmann has been providing the world with deep, techy house gems for a whole decade now. And to celebrate the fact, here eight of his finest remixes to date are gathered together in long-playing record album format.

The originals come from (deep breath) Booka Shade, Freestyle Man, Marlow, Luna City Express, Clé, Dash Dude, Michael Melchner and Gamat 3000, but like they say in Airplane!, that's not important right now… what's important is me telling you that if you're after some dancefloor-oriented deep/tech house grooves that are, generally speaking, fairly tuff and percussive but without getting stupid about it, this is a very solid bet indeed.

Which I just did, so job done.

Out: This week

About: This comes on Tanzmann's own Moon Harbour label, who can be found here, here and here (website, Facebook, Soundcloud).

Robert Solheim – Cigueñas Remixes

I don't think anything from Aquavit BEAT has featured on here before… I did get sent the album this is taken from back in June but I have to admit it appears to have got a little overlooked. I'll be going back to check it again now though, because the original version of Cigueñas, which features here, is great – a dreamy, late-night meander that blends deep house, prog and techy elements superbly.

It's accompanied on this single release by two rerubs. Yo Montero & Ian Cris's is minimal and trippy with an insistent bass squelch for much of its duration, while Swayzak's Homage To Catalonia Remix is an 11-minute trek into deep techno pastures.

The original just pips it for me, but there's plenty for deeper heads to enjoy here whichever mix you plump for.

Out: This week

About: Aquavit BEAT are a Norwegian label… here's their website, Facebook and Soundcloud if you wanna know more

[sic] - Flux EP

We move into techier territory here with the latest from Bristol's [sic], coming on his own fledgling mu:sic label.

In its Original form, Flux itself is an upbeat slice of techno/tech-house that's all looping synth FX and crisp, driving beats. The Ian Jay Remix of the same is tougher and techier still, though not so much so that it'd drive the househeads from the dancefloor, while the EP's completed by Industry, another uptempo techno/tech-house cut that wouldn't have sounded out of place on a label like 1605.

Eyes down now…

Out: This week

About: The best way to get in touch with mu:sic is via [sic]'s own website

Lamech – The Hypnagogic Toolkit EP

Better known for more leftfield/downtempo/experimental grooves, here Greta Cottage Workshop serve up an EP of more straight-up house vibes.

Ham n' Funk kicks off the EP, a lo-slung, sleazy bass-led groove topped with gentle ivories and chopped-up vocal snips. Misty Vegetable is a more shufflin' kinda cut with ALMOST something of a garage-y swing, while the Misty Trukker's Dusty Banana Shape remix of the same takes us into weirded-out minimal/deep techno territory. And then finally, Second Skin is an interesting fusion of techy sounds and languid, late-night vibes.

It's a decent EP all round but Ham n' Funk is the one – a floorburner in the right joints and no mistake, guv'nor.

Out: This week

About: You can find Greta Cottage Workshop at their own website, on Soundcloud or on Facebook.

Reash – Dead Center

Another fledgling label here, with this being just the third release from Trick Track Records, straight outta Den Haag in the Netherlands.

There are three mixes of Dead Center. In its original form, it's a deep techno groove with a distinctive "all night… feel it… get down" spoken/whispered male vocal sample. The Addo Remix is proggier, with much use made of Italo-style analogue synths, while the James Dax Remix also takes us into prog territory but in a deeper, more end-of-night and to these ears more satisfying fashion. Finally, rounding out the EP is bonus cut Total Control, which starts out as a fairly abstract deep/minimal techno affair before exploding into a soundscape of luxurious ambience and overdriven guitar that's reminiscent of early System 7.

It's the original of the title track I'm liking the most but fans of slightly more leftfield electronic vibes will find plenty to enjoy here.

Out: This week

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

Artone & Anton Pau – Need Deep EP

Okay, so that's Shambala out of the way and it's back to the daily grind… today it's been a birrova slog getting back into the groove TBH so it seems appropriate to kick off the week's reviews at a lower tempo, with this three-track slab of ultra-deep tech-house/minimal from Macedonia's Artefact label.

Need Deep itself comes from just Artone, and is in its Original form a stripped-down house groove in the Detroit (and yes, I mean Detroit as opposed to Chicago) stylee, all clipped beats and stabs, but slowly building with tinkling analogue synths. Anton Pau then supplies a Dubb Mix [sic] which takes us into even more minimal and sparse territory, while finally the pair, er, pair up for Soul Shakin', which is in a similar vein to the Original of Need Deep but just that little bit more overtly house-ified with its organ sounds and male vocal stabs.

Uncompromising deepness for the esoterically inclined.

Out: This week

About: You can find Artefact on Soundcloud or Facebook… their website proper is currently getting a re-re-re-remix.

ALBUMS Hakimonu - Cadences & Frameworks/Worlds Are Born Again

A two-for-one deal here, cos what we have here are TWO recent albums by Israeli producer Hakimonu – something of a mystery man who started out producing trance but has moved in recent years into progressive house, techno and minimal territories.

The first of the two, Cadences & Frameworks, bears the sub-title 'Techno Sketches', which is indeed a pretty accurate description of the sounds contained within. The emphasis is on abstract, often quite melancholic pieces, almost entirely instrumental (bar one or two brief spoken snippets), with Cadence 10: Move really the only excursion onto the minimal dancefloor. Otherwise, this is an album that calls for late nights, sofas, low lights and possibly a jazz fag or two.

The other album, Worlds Are Born Again, isn't HUGELY dissimilar, but it does boast a couple more floor-friendly tracks, and there's also a greater emphasis on melodic and musical elements as opposed to just rhythms and textures… as befits an album that's not subtitled 'sketches', I guess!

I'm no expert on abstract/arty/downtempo sounds like this, so I'm not gonna try and draw comparisons, but when some laidback yet involving listening is required, reaching for either of these albums wouldn't be a bad move by any means. If forced at gunpoint to pick a winner it'd be Cadences… I think, but it's a close run thing.

Out: Now… one of 'em came out late June, the other late July, but your idiot of a reviewer can't remember which way round it was. 

About: Worlds Are Born Again comes to you via Berlin-based label Sleep Is Commercial, while as far as I can make out Cadences… is self-released, so here's Hakimonu's Soundcloud and MySpace pages. Check the latter and you'll see that Cadences… did also come out some time back but don't worry, it's not me being blonde, it's just that it's never had a proper 'push' until now.

Fraser Owen – Nascent EP

The latest from Wesley Burden and co's Sideways Recordings stable here.

In its original form, Slide To Unlock – credited to Fraser Owen & Bradley P – is a fairly mellow, unhurried kinda deep house groove from the dreamy side of the street, completed halfway through by the arrival of some looping female vocal snips. It's probably best suited to warm-up or afterhours play, but in these lower-tempo times who knows? Omid 16B then supplies a rub that takes us into minimal/deep techno pastures, while bringing the EP to a close is Elixir, which is credited to Fraser Owen & Ben Macklin and which is a slightly more driving deep houser with a slightly proggy kinda feel.

It's the Original of Slide To Unlock that I'm loving the most but this is a strong package all round, and well worth investigating.

Out: This week

About: Sideways Recordings are based in Folkestone, Kent and can be found at their website, on Facebook and on Soundcloud.

The Soulshapes – Mandala EP

The Soulshapes will be a new name to most, but you'll probably know the members Rocco and Torre Bros from releases on such respected labels as Buzzin Fly, Freerange and Komplex De Deep.

Here, as The Soulshapes, they serve up a two-tracker for Sebastian Davidson's ever-checkable Nightbird Music, with Mandala coming in no-nonsense Original and Dub flavas. The Original is a 7.5-minute instrumental workout with both Afro/tribal influences and a hint of cosmic disco, while the Dub ditches the analogue synths and brings the African percussion to the floor.

Not being the biggest fan of Afro-oriented vibes this wouldn't be topping my personal Nightbird Top 10, I have to admit, but there are floors that lap this stuff up, and Soulshapes' fusion of ethnic  percussion with such a minimal approach overall is interesting, too.

Out: This week

About: You can find Nightbird Music on Soundcloud and Facebook.

Danny O – Bossa EP

It's a tale of two Dannies on TIWWD tonight… first up is Danny O, who serves up an EP of very contemporary-sounding deep/tech house on Essex label Hype Muzik.

Bossa itself, or rather Bossa Nights, works what I THINK is a tiny bite from that classic, "It's just like when you get a cup of coffee that's too black, which means it's too strong" sample, pairing it with a simple two-note bass/synth parp and beats that are so stripped back, toppy and minimal that, while all very 'now' and that, they also remind me of Azuli Black's excursions into the more far-out regions of two-step back circa 2000… only in 4/4 rather than two-step time.

It's accompanied by Bossa Beats, which ISN'T the even-more-stripped pass you might be expecting, but an altogether funkier deep house groove reminiscent of classic west coast bizniss. Elsewhere on the EP, Comfort Zone is more now-sounding deep/tech goodness, while Don't Be Alarmed is a more glitchy, minimal-leaning cut.

With a range of styles on offer, this is Hype's best in while for my money.

Out: Tomorrow

About: Hype Muzik is part of the Stripped Muzik family… as I'm sure you know by now.

William Welt – More Than Minimal EP

Three tracks in a total of six mixes here, on William Welt's first solo release for his own well-established 22 Digit Records.

Vibe & Soal [sic] is a lush, laidback deep house groove with a spoken male vocal. It's good, but for me it comes into its own more on the Ekkohaus Remix, a beefed-up dubby pass aimed fair and square at the more discerning dancefloors. Nightingale is next: in its original form, this is an esoteric, bass-heavy groove sitting on the house/techno borders, with rainforest sounds that make you think of E2/E4 or some other long-lost Loft classic. Ricardo Jefferson's remix takes it into proggier territory but for me it's the original that wins out this time. And then finally there's Seaside Samba, an unsurprisingly Latin-tinged percussive techno workout in its original form before Heisenburg turns the dark up on his big, brooding refix.

The latter cut's a bit too techno for me, so personally I'll be sticking to the first two… but the EP as a whole does demonstrate perfectly that there is, indeed, more to Welt than just the minimal techno for which he first became known.

Out: This week

About: This is number 31 from 22 Digit… and here they are on Facebook.

Klartraum – Playfulness EP

I've gotta say the Klartraum/Lucidflow school of deep, dubby, thinking man's techno has really been hitting the spot for me lately… so here's some more of it.

Three mixes, and while the above description works as an umbrella for all of 'em, they do vary. The Kris Wadsworth Space Face Remix is the deepest and dubbiest of all, leaving Nadja and Helmut sounding like they were locked in a huge underground water tank for a few days with nothing but a big bag of weed and a drum machine for company, while the Tim Underbelly Soft Porn Remix flirts with the very deepest of prog textures, layering sound upon sound to create an atmospheric and ever-evolving mix.

But while both of those are very cool, the pick for me here is still the Original, a glitchy, twitchy affair that's as close as deep techno ever gets to two-step garage. FFWD veterans, minimal/micro-house devotees and red-eyed dawn tokers generally should enjoy this one a lot.

Out: This week, digitally (it's been kicking around on vinyl for a couple of weeks but it only landed with me last week)

About: This comes not on Klartraum's Lucidflow, but on Tim's own UK-based Underbelly Records. Here's the obligatory website, Facebook and Soundcloud links, then…

Vibah - Trapped In My World EP

A brand new four-tracker here from the UK's fledgling Zipped Records.

"Deep techno/minimal house" is how they're billing it on the hype sheet, and that certainly works for the originals of both Bad Neighbour and Leave Me Alone – two tracks for those who like it sparse, bleepy and a little bit off-kilter.

When it comes to the remixes, though, it's a different story. Both DJ Saint Louis (in the case of Leave Me Alone) and Deadb8 (Bad Neighbour) tone down the ketamine wonk and smooth over the rough edges, such that Leave Me Alone ends up as a muscular, throbbing slab of club techno while Bad Neighbour, with its extended breakdowns and long builds, moves towards progressive house territory.

Overall then, this is very solid stuff, with mixes to suit a range of floors.

Out: This week

About: Zac Cawdron's Zipped Records can be found on Facebook and Soundcloud, and since we last covered anything of theirs they've got their actual website up and running properly too so have a peep!

Dan Styles - Smokey EP

In honour of the UK government's ridiculous ban on tobacco displays in shops… here's the latest from Essex-based Hype Muzik. It's a two-track affair so I needn't detain you long, so you can get on with trying to guess which shops sell fags and which don't.

Smokey itself is a deep, minimal techno joint, with a spacey, tripped-out kinda feel. Meanwhile on the B, People Say operates in similar territory, but this time with a female vocal and enough funk flowing through its veins that it could appeal equally to deep house or even future garage floors.

However, as the powers that be would no doubt much rather you listened to Nicki Minaj, One Direction and other bland corporate shite instead, expect legislation pushing quality, head-centric electronic music like this under the counter any day now.

What did you think this was, a free country or something?!

Out: This week

About: Hype Muzik is of course part of Norman H's Stripped Muzik empire.

Owen Howells – Zipped Up EP

Fans of deep/glitchy/minimal techno step right this way, as Owen Howells serves up this three-tracker for Zipped Records.

I'll be honest and say the Stanky Remix of Deptford isn't for me – too glitchy by half I'm afraid. But never mind, because you also get Bam, which somehow manages to infuse its spastic techno rhythms and disconcerting (backwards?) vocal samples with something of the spirit of classic b-boy electro. And more importantly, you also get It's All Kicked Off Now.

Easily overlooked if you don't give it a chance to linger, the latter turns out to be as fine a piece of sparse, dubbed-out deep techno as you'll hear this week. Skin up, sit back and enjoy…

Out: This week

About: You can find Zipped Records on Facebook, and you can currently HEAR THIS on their Soundcloud page

William Heath – Minimal Subliminal

Well now, here's a confusingly titled record… cos it isn't particularly minimal, and it certainly doesn't sound like anything on Subliminal either. It is rather good, though.

Actually, I guess Minimal Subliminal is a little bit 'minimal'-ish in its sound palette – lots of random blips and clicks. But there's not, y'know, one of the above every 20 seconds and that's it, or anything. Instead, I'd say the overall vibe is deep-ish techno, but with a definite spring in its step… so more of a dancefloor cut than the phrase 'deep techno' often implies, I guess.

But then what do I know? I never claimed to be any great expert on techno, I'm a house boy! "I don't know about techno but I know what I like," to coin a phrase. And I like this.

Just the one mix so that's all I've got to say, really.

Out: This week

About: This is on Manchester-based label Zipped Records, run by Zac Cawdron who's been a big supporter of the TIWWD Facebook page since it started, so thanks for that Zac! There are plenty more goodies from Zipped coming soon so keep an eye on their Facebook, Soundcloud and MySpace pages.

Neil Browne - Watch Dis

Okay, so just in case you were thinking the Wagon Cookin' track was a bit poppy – which admittedly it is, but I still like it all the same – let's move on next to this (or should that be dis?) which is as resolutely underground an affair as you could ask for.

It's good value for money, too, cos there are no fewer than six mixes of Watch Dis to choose from, representing a range of styles. The Original, d00sh and Darren Flecta mixes could all basically be filed under the 'tech-house' banner, but they do vary: the Original uses eastern sounds and crisp beats, d00sh's has more techno-fied lo-end rumble while Darren Flecta's is a bit more tripped out in a plinky-plonk kinda way. All are playable but I think the Original wins out for sheer originality in its sound palette.

There's also a darker and more overtly techno mix from Glen McArdle, but perhaps of most interest to TIWWD readers will be the rubs from Echofusion and Moojah. Echofusion's Deeper Remix is, unsurprisingly, a deep house refix and perfectly tailored for very, very late play, with one of those spoken vocals you either love or hate: "the vibe, the groove, the music… house music… this is deep house", you know the deal! Some might find that off-putting I guess but I'm a sucker for those kind of vocals so this mix is working just fine and dandy for me. And then finally, we come to Moojah's rub… a deep as in 'deeeeeeep' dub/minimal techno affair that's surprisingly upbeat while at the same time pushing the 'less is more' ethos to the max.

It's the last two rubs that are my picks, as you might have guessed, but just generally, this is one for the proverbial 'proper heads' for sure.

Out: This week

About: Yep, it's another gem dug up by those ever-prolific Endemic Digital boys…

Nick Robson - Logistics EP

Okay, so if I can just distract everyone from the Richie Hawtin/vinyl vs digital/Facebook storm in a teacup for one second… teehee… here we have two prime slices of what you might quite justifiably call 'tracky shit' from Mr Robson, aimed really at techno/minimal floors but – might I be so bold as to suggest – enough of a funky feel to appeal to house jocks too.

Logisticks, as the name suggests, is an out-and-out drum track, while One To Eight on the flip is as much about the pulsating b-line and as it is about the endlessly looping hand percussion. Neither's likely to be your favourite tune of the year or end up as one of your Desert Island Discs, but then they're not meant to. These are tracks designed purely for adding depth and texture to your DJ sets, and they'll do that job admirably. Fine work Mr R.

Out: This week

About: This comes atcha on those Essex-based techno stalwarts Sounds of Juan.

Various – Late Night Chronicles

A four-track EP from Soiree Records concentrating, as you've probably guessed, on mellower vibes on a post-club kinda tip. As it's from Detroit, I guess we should use the word 'beatdown' as well.

CloudMasterWeed gives us Sunny (remixed by Mattimo-Perine), a very deep and quite slow number with bruk-style percussion, pulsating pads, nicely understated minor-key jazz pianos and what I could swear is a sample of Presuming Ed's chanting from Withnail & I! Blackjack's Triaxial is more firmly in deep house territory but just as dreamy and drifty, while Professor Inc's Quindrant Dub is for those who like it a little techier and more experimental. And more minimal, cos it's barely even there at times!

But the star of the show here for me is Peppermint Kisses by Drivetrain, AKA Derrick Thompson, who I hadn't heard anything from I don't think since the excellent One Wish Wonder album on Little Angel in 2005. It's a simply sumptous slice of sultry, soulful and uber-deep house… with some rather filthlicious spoken vox if you listen carefully.

All told, a highly recommended purchase for sofa surfers and lounge lizards everywhere.

Out: This week

About: This comes on Soiree International. Based in the Motor City as I said, the label is run by Derrick Thomson himself and was also home to Drivetrain's OTHER 2005 album, which I've only just found out about, The Deepest Harmony Of Drivetrain. Hey, every day's a school day...