Phono Obscura confidently charts the course of Hallucienda, the new imprint that is the evolution of Hallucination Limited, curated and collated by renowned DJ and trusted tastemaker Three. With an eclectic assortment of established names and future candidates from the electronic music globe, Phono Obscura’s nine tracks present a focused vision through artists that balance the need to push envelopes and the desire to fill dance floors. These producers represent the initial Hallucienda family, with future album artists rubbing shoulders with 12“ mercenaries. Opening on Lock Smith’s hypnotically oozing ”Wouldn’t You“, Phono Obscura proposes a dream-zone safe house in between the head space and the bass bin. As one forwards to Reverse Commuter’s ominous remix of ”History Is Not Shrinking“, by The Bystanders in collaboration with Mount Sims and Linda Lamb, and J. Alvarez’s vintage machine funk of ”Strut”, the sound and thematic binding string of Phono Obscura is clear. Other contributions from Wiggle’s Terry Francis, Sunshine Jones of Dubtribe, Radio Slave, Remi Mazet, Öona Dahl & Johnny Cruz, and NYC’s Ulysses further cement Phono Obscura’s status as a step above a mere compilation project. There is evidently a lot of thought and strategy in Three’s selection to accurately convey the message of Phono Obscura and its series, as this is just the first of many planned editions.
Gavin Hardkiss - "This is timeless music. A proper inquiry into the nuances of the darker side of house music."
James Zabiela - "'Strut', 'Dance Gravity', the Radio Slave remix, 'Oceans', 'The Sun' … all dope! Congrats on the new label"
Laurent Garnier - "I really love Lock Smith's 'Wouldn't You'. I'll be playing this a lot."
Soul Clap - "Wow, loving this compilation … Hallucienda 'til ya burn!"
Doc Martin - "I'm slightly biased towards these producers and grooves … a little something for the headstrong. Full support!"
Nick Warren - "Excellent compilation, guys. Some killers here!"
John Digweed - "Good stuff."
Peter Kruder - "Cool compilation with loads of good stuff on."
Greg Oreck (Thugfucker) - “I've been excitedly awaiting this reincarnation of Hallucination and even my high expectations have been exceeded. PHONO OBSCURA is a lot like Three himself. Sometimes deep, sometimes hard, often trippy, and always a sight for sore eyes / ears when you're about four days into an after-party that doesn't seem like it will ever end. We'll surely be playing every single one of these tracks and I honestly can't remember any other compilation I could have said that about. Quality stuff from a quality source. And a great and diverse collection of sounds and artists that we'll be definitely waiting to hear more from."
Available now from Beatport, iTunes, and Juno Download.