I suspect I’m not alone in having heard this for the first time on Carl Craig’s absolutely killer 1995 Essential Mix, where it emerges from the Blade Runner soundtrack to start the set off with an almighty bang. Raw-as-fuck drums and an unlikely Steely Dan sample form the backbone, and the only elements from the… Continue reading Dajae – Day By Day (Carl Craig dub)
Tag: house
Playlist: The Drake, Glasgow, 15th November 2013
For the past couple of years, on most Friday nights, I've been lucky enough to play four hours of soul, jazz, hip hop, house and techno at one of my favourite pubs, The Drake in Glasgow. Here's a snapshot of last week's selections for anyone interested. One of these days I might even get round… Continue reading Playlist: The Drake, Glasgow, 15th November 2013
C++ – Abnormal
Here’s a raw, bleepy cut from Joshua back in 1995 which still bangs like a motherfucker. Released on Derrick Carter’s short-lived but pretty essential Blue Cucaracha label, in some ways it would have been right at home on Relief with its overdriven, hard-as-nails drums and FM synth weirdness, but the slinky, mid-paced groove, unusual percussion… Continue reading C++ – Abnormal
Kuniyuki – Precious Hall
Here’s some deeper-than-deep house vibes from Japan for a rainy Saturday afternoon. It’s on Joe Claussell’s Natural Resource label, an offshoot of Spiritual Life, but it’s pretty edgy and abstract compared to some of its more wishy-washy contemporaries. Tough, super-punchy drums and live percussion underpin an ever-mutating orgy of synths and sound effects, floating in… Continue reading Kuniyuki – Precious Hall
Theo Parrish – Lost Keys
Possibly not one of Theo’s best known or most celebrated cuts, but certainly one which hasn’t left my box since it came out in 1997, Lost Keys is on the B-side of his first EP for the brilliant Music Is… label. I remember picking this up for a couple of quid at the fortnightly record… Continue reading Theo Parrish – Lost Keys
Chris Nazuka – Joy, Awe, Anguish, Love and Triumph
There were a few years in the mid-90s when Derrick Carter and his Chicago cronies could do no wrong in my eyes, and there’s plenty of great stuff on labels like Blue Cucaracha and Plink Plonk which I’ll feature here one day. But the other Rednail Kid’s handful of solo efforts were always particularly special,… Continue reading Chris Nazuka – Joy, Awe, Anguish, Love and Triumph
DFA – 3/5 Human
Not to be confused with James Murphy's New York operation, this DFA is a Detroiter named James Trammell, and the snappily-titled Microstructural Characterization EP - the only thing he ever released, to my knowledge - made a few quiet waves when it emerged on his own Surveillance label back in 2001. All three tracks are excellent… Continue reading DFA – 3/5 Human
KB Project – Nothing Can Stop You
This is Dan ‘DBX’ Bell on his own rare-as-hen’s-teeth Elevate label back in 1999, with a precision-engineered DJ tool in the vein of Masters At Work’s Kenlou output. There’s nothing to it beyond a jazz-funk Rhodes lick that’s cut up, filtered and looped, a spoken word sample that gives the track its title, and simple,… Continue reading KB Project – Nothing Can Stop You
Microman – Design-Shop-House
From Moodymann to Microman, and a pretty obscure, beautifully strange and strangely beautiful Swedish record from 1999. The slightly lo-fi YouTube clip below contains both tracks from side A, but the whole EP is excellent. Warm, understated deep house is the order of the day, and while you can hear influences ranging from Larry Heard… Continue reading Microman – Design-Shop-House
Moodymann – JAN
This sprawling, 11-minute epic from 2001 is one of the last truly great Kenny Dixon Jr productions, for my money. A low-down, insistent bassline and a 4/4 kick power the sparse first section along underneath an eerie tapestry of choirs, Rhodes and strings, interspersed with cool-as-fuck samples (one of which gives this blog its name) of… Continue reading Moodymann – JAN
Nothin' But Magic 