Black Sjuan - The Underdog Railroad (Assylum Effort Records)

Black Sjuan is probably the most notorious ghost producer in Chicago. Whether or not dance floors realize it, they’ve already heard his sound. Black Sjuan’s Assylum Effort has evolved from a boutique production house to a full-on Chicago house label, pushing a classic sound while injecting it with something unique and new.

The Underdog Railroad is the new album from Black Sjuan, proclaiming his underground house music aesthetic over eight down n' dirty deep house cuts. Black Sjuan explains the album: "This is album represents a side of Chicago night life you never see in magazines and on Instagram. Gang parties, secret Jevohah's Witness raves, sex worker conferences, cartel crew rages, undercover cops, surgeon orgies, rooftop grows, drug fueled restaurant after-hours … I could tell you about it, but i wrote an album instead."

After the introductory track, the album jumps right into it with "Trying 2 Trip With Angels," a dark and dubby house music work-out with a grinding bass line and echoed string chops. "No Love In Bubble City" expands on this vibe with its crisp, swinging drum track and filtered melodic elements. "Heart Machine" raises the tempo and the dance floor insistence — staccato synth hits and the rapid bass groove play against each other in a rhythmic style. These are just the first few highlights — all the tracks on The Underdog Railroad are tailor-made for house heads looking to dig deeper.

Alvaro Hylander (DeepWit) – “Blunt Live is the one for me. Cool stuff.”
Tyler Stadius (Deepsite) – “Cool Raw Heavies.”
Blueshift (Nurvous Records) – “Nice grooves. I especially like Trying 2 Trip With Angels.”
Ken Liu (Headset Hi-Fi) – “Very nice. Feeling Heart Machine and Red Love the most.”
DJ P-REZ (Not So Fast Records) – “The entire album is amazing. Well done!”
Pat Lezizmo (Conva Records) – “Sizzling drums and grooves – real nice!”
DJ Firefly (Couch Dancing) – “The kind of stuff that gets played at all the best parties.”

Available Now From: Traxsource, Beatport, Apple Music, And Spotify.

KiloWatts & PointBender - Western Wolf Remixes (Harmonious Discord)

Last summer Harmonious Discord released a rare vinyl feature highlighting two long-time label creators, KiloWatts and PointBender. The EP featured deep, cerebral journeys like “Circling the Crown”, pulsating nighttime anthems like “Western Wolf’, and low-swung cross-over classics like "Swangert." For this release, the two producers enlisted the brainpower of close friends, returning artists, and consistent innovators to help celebrate 20 years of the label.

Included in this set is the return of house music legend Demarkus Lewis. Demarkus remixed Morgan Page on Harmonious Discord in 2004 and his applied skills to this project produced two fantastic flavors of "Western Wolf," ripe with bumping movement. Behind The Sky boss and genre-bending force, Bluetech applies his deep knowledge and context to deliver a beautifully evolving masterpiece. Berlin’s Noah Pred explores innovative angles of bio-mechanical feedback with a beautifully growing, often organic feeling re-imagining.

The project starts off with a musically elevated remix of “Swangert”. Bluetech sets free the dithered musical undertones with modulated synth patterns that dance romantically by and through each other. The vocal treatment enters cosmic terrain while the subtle bass jamming keeps a funk focus flowing. Next up is the Deez Puppy Chow Mix of "Western Wolf" which tames the elements of the original into a body-moving selection prime for rocking big-sound speakers. The remix reaches peak-time tension with the introduction of expertly crafted acid lines. The following Deez Acid Free Remix delivers the same energy without the frontal acid line, but more emphasis on rising effects patterns that maintain the level of insanity. Our final guide into the deep crevices of a-cult warehouse worship is the Acid Reign Remix by Noah Pred. Pred doesn’t hesitate to get into melodically complex corners from the start and leaves plenty of room for sonic expansion as his synthesizer elements embody a mind of their own. A true embodiment of Harmonious Discord's 20-year celebration is perfectly captured in this high-powered collection.

Colin Dale (Abstrakt Dance Records) – “A solid EP with some really cool sounds.”
Anthony Pappa (Bedrock) – “Noah Pred’s Acid Reign remix is cool.”
Rory Hoy (Howlin’ Records) – “I really like the Bluetech remix. Funky stuff!”
Scheibosan (Shanti Roots) – “I like the acid on Deez Puppy Chow Mix.”
Black Mighty Wax (Irma Records) – “An intriguing release.”
DJ Firefly (Couch Dancing) – “Great new takes on some excellent originals.”
Simon Kirk (Proton Radio) – “Powerful remixes. Truly forward thinking music.”

Available Now From: Beatport, Bandcamp, Apple Music, And Spotify.

Boblebad - Kalde Vibber (Beatservice Records)

Punching in with the anticipated new episode of his singular jaunts into electronic music’s wild blue yonder is Beatservice habitué Ulf Moen Denneche, alias Boblebad. Following up to his previous release — the fun and bouncy Vill Falafel— the Norwegian producer dishes out the Kalde Vibber EP. Its four cuts continue in the same vein of Boblebad’s playful disco: cosmopolitan, unruly, and definitely nutty by nature. With other releases for Paper, Eskimo, and Full Papp, as well as a full album due early next year, Boblebad’s on the quick rise.

True to Boblebad's ever intricate engineering of floor-ready dynamics and off-piste bizarro, "Hundeliv" breaks the EP in to the sound of barking dogs, middle-Eastern strings and aloof-yet-fevered drumwork, slowly hatching into a full-fledged off-kilter club tune as bars go by. More of an Italo-infused oddity, "Mørketid" evokes damper, more nocturnal ambiences with its fluttering mix of cheap Casio synths and early ‘Prince of Persia’ harmonics either out an Ali Baba-themed Vegas casino or some dusty Commodore floppy disk.

As usual with Boblebad, the U-turns are pretty radical, and though it draws elements from a similar palette, track three "Paraplydrink" veers off onto more ambient-friendly territories of pre-trance electronica a la KLF, complete with the odd steel pan sequence to have the listener drifting far and wide into a Caribbean Eden of sorts. "Kalde Vibber" rounds it off on a further anthemic note with an irresistibly infectious mix of squelchy bass, deep synth vibrations, and intuitive organicity, sure to have the dancers zoning out in a flash. Jockeys take note, this one's got "perfect closing track / after-wrapper" written all over it.

Redstickman (The Ambient Mafia) – “Kalde Vibber definitely has "closing track" written all over it. I can imagine throwing this one down as the sunlight creeps in through the cracks in the blackened windows of whatever club I'm playing at. Brilliant!”
Andreas Kinzl (Aromabar) – “Some nice cosmic disco.”
Gabriel Ferreira (Items & Things) – “Love it! As usual.”
Crate Invader (Point Blank, London) – “Love this. synth pop tinged deep house, keeping it current but with a nod to the 80s. Sublime.”
Jon Fugler (Fluke) – “All lovely tracks. Paraplydrink though, is a thing of beauty.”
Sandro Bianchi (Ibiza Sonica) – “Amazing release, love it!”
Hober Mallow (Mighty Reel, Sydney) – “Have been playing Hundeliv and Paraplydrink regularly, love this sound. The other two are new to me but welcome additions, standout is Kalde Vibber.”

Available Now From: Bandcamp, Beatport, Apple Music, And Spotify.

Ursula 1000 - Gimme A Sign feat. Emma Noble (Insect Queen Music)

New York's Ursula 1000, the wizard of the retro/futuro sound, is back with his Single of the Month Club series! Ursula was riding high off the fumes from his chart-topping 2019 album Esoterique, but with the world on pause last year, Ursula got cracking, working his unique continental pop sound for a new batch of goodies. Now every first Monday of the month brings a new offering from Ursula's music laboratory. Next up from the Single Of The Month Club is the funky mid-tempo groover "Gimme A Sign" featuring London's very own Emma Noble. With a soul-inspired vocal, Emma delivers a modern, uplifting, party shaker — a fantastic funk stomper with a glorious pastiche of sonic elements inspired by dance music of the 70s, 80s, 90s, and beyond. Emma's signed with Cosmos Music and has worked with Acid Jazz Records, Lack of Afro, and spins records all over the UK and Europe as one half of the dynamic DJ duo Noble & Heath. These grooves are fierce!

Jayl Funk (Timewarp Music) – “This is f’ing good!”
Rory Hoy (Super Hi-Fi) – “Love it! Love it! Love it!”
Kid Loco (Flor) – “Now, do you wanna move your ass? I’m moving mine.”
Kosta (Vibe FM) – “Loving this! Spectacular vibe.”
Nutritious (SpinSpinNYC) – “Digging the funk. Excellent. Will support on Magnetic Magazine.”
Quincy Jointz (Ibiza Global Radio) – “Catchy tune with a funky bassline. Will be on my next radio show.”

Available Now From: Bandcamp, Beatport, Apple Music, And Spotify.