Vincent Kwok - Tres EP (Transport Recordings)

Vincent Kwok returns to San Francisco's Transport Recordings for a trio of delectable house music treats, collected under the banner of the Tres EP. With recent cuts on SP Recordings, Double Cheese Records, and Soulsupplement Records – as well as his continuing work with DJ MFR's Transport imoprint – Vincent Kwok has been consistently providing dance floors with his warm and soulful house music sound for over a decade. The EP launches with "Tres", a potent mix of big, staccato chords, emotive vocal hits, classic organ bass, and uplifting vibes galore. This is followed by "Streets Coming Up" which is a deeper take on Kwok's style. Gentle, swirling pads, a percussive synth melody, and more well-placed vocal phrases make for a beautifully dreamy after-hours moment. "Feeling Alight" closes the release, continuing this enchanting late night feel. Filtered chords swell and wane under soulful vocal samples, creating a wonderfully dynamic ride. The masterful combination of the rolling bass line and polished house beats enhance things further. With the Tres EP, Vincent Kwok is in top form.

Quentin Harris - "Nice tracks!"
Julius Papp - "I'm digging this ode to '90s house, with each track evoking its own mood."
Hippie Torrales - "I am loving this EP."
Andrew Macari (Greenhouse / Tastie) - "Dope deepness … I love it."
Jask - "Very nice."
DJ Yogi (Random Soul) - "Nice to hear Vincent Kwok back on the biz."
Gene Farris - "Good stuff!"
Fabio Tosti (Music Plan Records / Who's Inda House) - "Nice EP. 'Tres' and 'Streets Coming' have a classic sound, reminiscent of the glorious '90s."
Inland Knights - "Cool tracks."
Al Bradley (3am Recordings) - "Classy action from Vincent right here, in particular the bubbling groove on 'Streets Coming Up'. This has a real timeless feel to it."
Matt Prehn (Oh So Coy / Large Music) - "'Feel Alright' has a sweet groove!"
Tim White (House Afrika) - "Vincent's been on the beat for the past 15 years … 'Streets Coming Up' and 'Feel Alright' are lovely."
Craig Stewart (Montana & Stewart / DCSTrax) - "A very tasty three tracker for the floor … I'm feeling the deepness of 'Feel Alright'."
Still Rob G (Smoke n Mirrors / Om Records) - "Classic vibes on these early morning risers. I dig 'em all."
DJ Di Costa (MoodyLushious Influences) - "An excellent and truly refined offering from Vincent Kwok. Loving the entire pack of treats here."
Michael Fossati (Spirit of House) - "A truly dazzling EP."
Deepshizzol (MyHouse-YourHouse Radio) - "Pure class from Vincent Kwok, as usual."
Jon Manley (hOUSEwORX Radio Show) - "Hands-raising deep soulful house from Vincent Kwok … uplifting vibes for the longer nights."

Available now from Beatport and Traxsource.

Darko Janevski - Doing It EP (Patsada Records)

Patsada Records has aimed their house music radar at Sofia, Bulgaria to discover up-and-coming producer Darko Janevski. Born in Macedonia, Darko has previously provided his funky brand of house music for Epoque Music Electronic and on a number of compilations, and these two new cuts for Patsada truly signal a talent on the rise. "Doing It" is a classy house number, building hypnotically over its nearly eight minutes with sharp, rhythmic sounds and filtered vocal loops. This one is perfect for that peak moment in a long after-hours set. "Specimen" follows, delivering a fresh track on a jazzy tip. The drums have a good bit of swing, and a bouncing bass line creates forward motion. Cool chords and vocal snippets further help place the cut firmly in the DJ's queue. As a bonus, Patsada's Miss Mee is on hand for a slammin' remix of "Specimen", adding big stabs and raising the tempo just a tad. Smart rhythmic cut-ups of the spoken vocals and a prominent low end combine in an appealingly energetic mix. It's official: Darko Janevski's new single brings the goods.

Abicah Soul - "This is nice!"
Robbie Hardkiss - "I'm digging that Miss Mee remix. Kinda moody, kinda happy, kinda funky."
DJ Craig C (Pound Boys) - "Some sexy ass deep house … I love the jackin' feel on 'Specimen'."
Giom (Supremus Records / Onethirty) - "The Miss Mee remix is cool."
Inland Knights - "Solid release … loving the groove."
Demarkus Lewis - "Miss Mee rocks it on this remix … lovely drive."
Chris Udoh (Tigerhook) - "Very cool, raw tracks."
Pete Williams (Natural Rhythm) - "Wicked release! 'Doing It' is doing just that."
Tommy Largo (Deepjacking Recordings / Guesthouse) - "Great EP!"
Freaky Behaviour (Odour Recordings / Greenhouse) - "'Doing It' is doin' it! Great track."
Ivan Garci (Vlosfer Records / Clinique Sampler) - "'Specimen' is great!"
Jason Hodges (Sampled Recordings) - "The Miss Mee remix is the cut!"
Bart Ricardo (Farris Wheel / Gourmand) - "Great tracks … I'll definitely play these."
Chemars (Ginkgo Music) - "Nice one … will support."
Richie Roberts (The Dance Factory, BBC) - "Great vibe, great build, great climax … sounds perfect to me."
Simon Kirk (Stag Beetle Radio Show) - "This is fantastic …it's the sort of stuff that has everyone heads down, grooving as one. Serious tunes."
J. Crocker (HMWK Radio Show) - "Definitely a five star release here. I'm all over this one in every way. And with my favorite neo-soul lady being sampled, i'm crazy on board."

Available now from Juno Download and iTunes.

Zona - Never Forget You (70x7 Records)

Focusing on the soulful and inspirational facets of house music, the production duo of Dimitri Craven and Jerry Andrews – collectively known as Zona – have unveiled "Never Forget", the latest single taken from the album Peace, Love and Understanding. This eclectic combo, based in Los Angeles, pushes a 'live' deep house style and has had previous acclaimed releases on Good For You Records, Kapa, and House Tribe Records. 70x7 Records is Zona's own imprint, and it plays host to the alluring "Never Forget".

Featuring regular collaborator Valerie Moise on vocals, Greg Brown on vibraphone, and the pounding surge of Greg Velasquez's percussion, "Never Forget" is soulful house at its best, accented with touches of acid jazz and deep disco. The song's lyrics send best wishes to a lost love as expressive layers of keys, vibes, and snappy rhythms – all buoyed by a super funky bass line – win over the most resistant of dance floors.

The remixes are led by the 'super collaboration' of Lenny RX, Eric Kupper, and Kenny Summit who deliver a breezy and soothing remix in a classic late night New York soulful style. The percussion-driven beat is gentle but solid, and warm pads and melodic synth leads accompany Valerie's voice with lovely sophistication. Next up, Sidney Perry, who runs the Qubonix label and is an up-and-coming producer on the LA house scene, provides an effective, stripped-down version of "Never Forget". Jazzy chords tightly follow the vocal melody, creating an atmosphere that's dreamy and hypnotic. There's also a Qubonix dub mix which highlights the vibraphone and pulls phrases from Valerie's vocal … pure deep house magic. The final remix comes from Paul Andrew, another DJ based in the City of Angels, and it's a delightful disco-tinged version featuring dubby effects through its distinctive sound, while maintaining the original's powerful bass line and percussion. Prime time business.

Quentin Harris - "The Super Collab Mix is hot!"
Gene Hunt - "Blazing, baby!"
Graeme Park - "Delicious … absolutely wonderful."
Opolopo - "Sweet package here with some nice remixes."
Gene Farris - "Nice one!"
Abicah Soul - "Beautifully done … The Qubonix mix has super flow."
Brothers' Vibe - "Great package!"
Marques Wyatt - "Digging this!"
Hollis P Monroe - "I'm feeling the Qubonix dub a lot!"
DJ Craig C (Pound Boys) - "I'm digging the vibe on this one … solid deep house!"
Master Kev - "That's a super remix from Lenny RX, Eric Kupper, and Kenny Summit!"
Kai Alcé (NDATL Muzik) - "The Qubonix mixes are my favorites."
Robert Owens - "Great track and mixes."
Tyree Cooper - "Hot s%&t! Loving it."
Beppe Gioia (Garage Family / Unified) - "Deep!"
Shane Johnson (Fish Go Deep) - "The Super Collab Mix is very classy, giving the vocal a perfect rich, musical ride. And I'm a sucker for a vibes solo!"
Richie Roberts (The Dance Factory, BBC) - "I've been hammering this for a week now … absolutely sensational from Eric Kupper and Kenny Summit."
Stefan Popovic (DiscoTone Radio Show) - "This is a smooth, beat rolling tune. Listen it once? Well… listen it twice – YUP! Rolling like a stone."
Miguel Garji (Ibiza Global Radio / DeepClass Records) - "The Qubonix remixes are the ones for me."
Michael Fossati (Spirit of House webzine) - "Top notch soul-infused mixes by Qubonix and the team of Lenny RX, Eric Kupper, and Kenny Summit are not to be missed."
Eddy Spirit (Spirit Crew / Janga Radio) - "An eclectic soulful production with outstanding vocals and blissful jazz-funk orchestration. The Qubonix dub break is sexy and hypnotic. This is a label to watch out in the future!"

Available now from Traxsource, Beatport, and iTunes.

Jeffrey Tice - Where Do You Go? (Harmonious Discord)

San Francisco resident Jeffrey Tice finds art and inspiration in unexpected places, whether it's gazing on the renegade street art of his hometown or crafting homages to his childhood heroes through his moniker Copy Correct. Outside of his re-works he exhibits a strong ability to harness everyday inspirations into warm and inviting musical works.

"Where Do You Go?" is a tale laden with a sentimental cast of memories and dreams and the intersection of warm experiences and a yearning to reach greater heights of happiness. The intro alone is a pensive reminder of soft autumn stillness with a steady build into more inviting dance floor material. Introducing the remixes, longtime house music veteran and Jacob London cast member Hanssen returns to the label to offer his unique blend of synthetic mastery and forward thinking tech edge to deliver a blend of perfected pads and driving arpeggios. Harmonious Discord mainstay Vital next ensures that the late night hours are covered with a techy rework, offering a more stripped down formula than the deeper original. Mexico’s Ivan Dbri completely flips the script with a deeper dub reminiscent of the Terry Lee Brown Jr. Dub Till Dawn series. It's NY-meets-Berlin with this sultry mix of late night pads. Label bosses PointBender and JDN round out the remix work with a chunky tech diversion that features chord repeats and a cornucopia of percussion. Finally the package includes another blissful contribution from Jeffrey perfect for house-minded mix sessions. "Folsom" embodies a brisk bay afternoon, and compliments its warmth with prevalent techno bass and vocal trickery. Stay tuned for more music from Jeffrey Tice on the Harmonious Discord imprint as the label celebrates its 15 year anniversary in the next year.

Larry Tee - "Hot!"
Sumsuch (Colour and Pitch / Mega Jawns) - "Both originals are really good. Feeling Vital's remix the most, but all very nice indeed."
Randall Jones (Audio Therapy / Baroque) - "Cool tunes!"
Leigh Morgan (Fancy Human / Urban Torque Transmissions) - "Deep! Yeah, this is cool stuff here … grooves a plenty."
Al Bradley (3am Recordings) - "Cool stuff across the release here. 'Folsom' has a lovely vibe, while Ivan Dbri's remix really is excellent. Proper deepness."
Tyler Stadius (Deepsite / Dialtone Records) - "Good deepsters here."
Hector De Mar (Liquid Music / Ritmik Records) - "The PointBender and JDN remix is the one for me."
Myxzlplix (Kodawari / Sunclock) - "Quite nice. The Hanssen remix comes with some fresh vibes."
Lorenzo al Dino (7th District Inc. / Royal Plastic) - "Solid production."
KP London (FEEL Radio Show) - "Hard to pick just one track … all of them are well done."
Brian Bacchus (Summit Sessions Radio Show) - "Great, groovy release. 'Folsom' was the highlight for me … it's just well layered and melodic with a nice smooth flow."
Jon Manley (hOUSEwORX Radio Show) - "Difficult to pick one out from this selection of nicely contrasting mixes. However, the Ivan Dbri mix goes proper deep and immersive."
Simon Kirk (Stag Beetle Radio Show) - "This is great … loads of remixes all delivering quality but for me it's 'Folsom' that steals it. A fine piece of music!"

Available now from Beatport.