Patchen - Southwest Passage Remixes (Harmonious Discord)

Southwest Passage, Patchen’s debut album, submerged its listeners in the energized, dulcet melodies of SF Bay Area producer Patchen Preston. The album is a collection of love letters to his cross-country life journey, all accented by meticulous sound design. Now, on the Southwest Passage Remixes, the album gets a deserved revisit with fantastic flips from KiloWatts, Polygon Rainbow, ONEX, quadratschulz, and Station Point. Wide ranges of ambient lullabies, intelligent electronic constructions, liquid atmospheres, and dubbed-out downbeats characterize this project with differing shades for all.

The first selection up is "Chime Garden," with a remix from the masterful KiloWatts, who leverages the tension of the original but layers on funky melodic instrumentation and syncopated synth work. Polygon Rainbow grabs the gazed-out "Office Life" for a signature vaporwave collision, complete with BOSS drums and arpeggiated bass. The cut builds on nostalgia with growing melodic elements. The album's tribute track "Techno Tony" gets a properly bent revision from Germany’s quadratschulz who delivers rapid-fire moods with systematic precision. The track moves through multiple scenes all with baked complexity. In contrast with the high energy of the quadratschulz remix comes a revision of "The End of the Beginning" with an absolutely tranquilizing drum-and-bass remix from ONEX. Melodically complex but comfortably simple, this remix evokes deep emotion while remaining technically sharp. Patchen returns to the project with a tangential approach to his "Chime Garden" tune, navigating it into more direct downtempo arenas. Wide stereo bass and slowly building garage drum constructions provide for a dancefloor iteration of the original. Closing out the project is the blissfully dubbed-out styling of longtime label member Station Point (Chakaharta, JDN). Unorthodox rhythm variations and infinitely evolving pad collisions usher the dub into the deeper water. This complexly beautiful tribute to one of the label’s premiere albums of 2022 is the fitting gift for this fall.

Nick Warren (The Soundgarden) – “A lovely set of mixes.”
Richard Hardcastle (Solid State) – “Quality package of atmospheric electronics. All high end.”
Psycho-Jones (Kater Blau) – “Love it!”
Andreas Kinzl (Aromabar) – “Serious works.”
Mason Rothert (Jet Set Radio) – “These are all awesome and unique.”
Harry Avers (NOICE! Radio show) – “A fine set of remixes. Harmoniously Delish.”

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

Legs 11 - Welcome Home (Beatservice Records)

Oslo-based four-piece Legs 11 return to Beatservice Records with their third studio album, serving seven beguiling tracks on the delightfully off-kilter Welcome Home.

Comprising of deviant players Sigmund Floyd, Torstein Dyrnes, Nils Tveten, and Audun Severin Eftevåg, Legs 11 have been Beatservice mainstays since making their label debut back in 2016. Fusing a disparate blend of esoteric sounds that include synth-pop, post-punk, new wave, house, and more, the quartet journey from the murkiest depths into the pop-leaning stratosphere, taking in all manner of mind-altering detours along the way. Throughout their production journey, they've reveled in the unexpected, and Welcome Home masterfully continues this aberrant trajectory.

Kicking things off in an energetic mood, the new wave swagger of "Flawless Logistics" dives deep into late-night rave abandon, Unhinged vocals and throbbing synth bass drive the cut through a futurist landscape of stripped rhythms and sinister tones before an atmospheric sax solo rises in to augment the searing lyrical message. Casting a critical eye on consumer-driven culture and mercenary musical forms, the vital composition is at once an unmissable social commentary and an irresistibly floor-filling groove.

Next, the glistening synths and sing-along vocals of "Coup" saunter over bouncing bass notes and crisp machine drums. Acid licks rise in to add thrust to the club-primed groove while brooding pads and sultry spoken words meander through the sonic space. Elegantly sashaying into post-punk swirls, the hallucinatory swagger of "Sax Consensual" bursts with theatrics. Seductively dart across the hyper-atmospheric backing track of pointed instrumentation, with glassy synths and fizzing drums joined by an evocative sax solo to vividly conjure late-night moods.

"Into The Darkness" bubbles with sinister intent, as striking bass and stripped rhythms charge through nocturnal synths, the serrated vocals purposefully projecting through the powerfully vivid subterranean mist. Maintaining the floor-focused tempo, "This Is Your Home" sees sleazy vocals soar across an alien landscape. Distorted toms drive the groove as mysterious swirls and metallic textures fizz across the off-world horizon. Growling bass arrives alongside a searing sax lead as the endlessly-morphing rhythm undulates and evolves.

"The Crawley Within" sees darkly suggestive vocals enveloped by ominous synths and snarling acid licks, the determined rhythm steering the sparsely-woven instrumentation across alien topography as sensual whispers permeate the groove as the music undulates to an aberrant climax. Finally, completing a strikingly coherent collection, "fuckboi" brims with attitude, with unhinged synths joined by growling rhythm guitar as the erotically-charged vocals project the steamiest of post-club invitations.

This is an entirely unique work from Legs 11. Deviant, potent, and fiercely energetic, each track is propulsive enough to ignite dancefloors while embodied with more than enough profundity for headphone immersion. Utterly compelling.

Psycho-Jones (Kater Blau) – “Wow! I love it.”
De Fantastiske To (Paper Recordings) – “Digging these. ‘This Is Your Home’ is insane!”
Black Mighty Wax (Irma Records) – “Reminds me of those good old years.”
DJ H4L 9000 (Excuse Me? Club) – “Great album. It’s too difficult to choose a favorite. The spirit of the 80’s but with a contemporary view.”
Wazac Martin (FM4) – “Relaxed & Elegant.”
Jon Fugler (XLNT radio show) – “I love the way these guys have no intention of drawing within the lines. Great to listen to, that’s the bottom line.”

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

Andrew Macari - Deep Woosh EP (Viva Recordings)

Veteran deep house DJ/producer Andrew Macari returns for another EP on Viva Recordings, the Deep Woosh EP. Andrew’s discography is wide, recording for classic imprints like Large Music, Afterhours, Greenhouse, and Nordic Trax. He has also recorded cuts as part of Toka Project, Filter Flow, and Guided Methods, and presently releases jackin' tracks under the alias Greenbay Jackers. The Deep Woosh EP is a tribute to the late Pete Woosh, part of the legendary DIY Soundsystem.

“All The Way Down” opens the EP with a chunky kick, moving percussion and the deep and disco tinged sounds Andrew and Toka are know for throughout the years. Up next, “U Don’t Know,” carries you away with deep, lush jazz tones and cryptic vocal snippets. “Like Some Change (2022 Mix)” is a new version of Some Like Change, a track from Andrew’s previous EP on Viva, and gives us another look at a timeless deep groover, with a bassline that creeps in and hits all the right buttons. Great vibes all around from Andrew Macari on the Deep Woosh EP … don’t miss out.

Murray Richardson (Electrica Salsa) – “Loving this, especially U Don’t Know. Top EP.”
Tyler Stadius (Deepsite) – “Real sweet groovers here.”
Takamasa Owaki (Cactus Experience) – “Really dope grooves that are formed by dope guitar, bass and kick. Really love the breakdowns as well.”
Adam Nathan (Viva Recordings) – “Love it. Straight up no-nonsense groovin’ house music.”
Rob Paine (Worship Recordings) – “Seems like all 3 are going to get some play from me.”
Mike Solus (Housemasters Radio) – “Exactly – Deep whoooooooosh. Dope.”

Available Now From: Bandcamp, Traxsource, Beatport, And Spotify.

Various Artists - Act I (Taul Boy Records)

With a worldly flair inspired by the fading summer heat, Taul Boy Records launches its Act compilation series with Act I. The series is a planned seasonal collection showcasing the label's artists while providing an outlet to stretch outside usual musical boundaries and experiment with new sounds. Listeners will be taken on a sonic journey laced with deep house, techno, and indie-dance flavors. Act I begins with the 'in your face' energy of Dolce, then to the mysterious, global allusions of Pulsion Thanatos, to the eclectic and building power of Organoid, and then closed out by the dark but hopeful whims of Keda. These selections offer variety and distinction, giving DJs a range of vibes to explore in different settings. Dig in … dig in deep.

Tyler Stadius (Deepsite) – “Some cool, original tracks.”
Lönya (Asymmetric Recordings) – “A great EP, support.”
Terry Jasinto (Dance Klassique) – “Really liking ‘Everything Nothing’. I can fit this into a lot of the sets I play.”
Simon Kirk (Stag Beetle Radio Show) – “Darkly mesmerizing music. Dolce is particularly captivating.”
Velanche (Urban Landscapes) – “Good variety of grooves.”
Jon Wesley (Music Goes On Radio Show) – “I really like all 4 tracks, hard to pick a favorite. I chose Keda since I’ll likely play that on first.”

Available Now From: Beatport, Juno Download, Apple Music, And Spotify.