It’s 9:30 on a Saturday night, and it’s time to relax. Have a good weekend.
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1. Lush Print (Original Mix) – Andy Hart – Etoka Records. It could just be me, but I’m usually drawn to keys that sound like this.
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2. Final Call (Matthias Vogt Remix) – Drei Farben House – Polytone. Final Call EP is one of my favorite all-around records this week.
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3. Institue of Shadow (Original Mix) – Thomas Muller – BPitch Control. I like this track because of all the things happening in the low to low-mid range. Interesting contrast between the very rigid stabs and the smooth bass.
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4. Fenske (Jan van Lier Remix) – Tyler Hampton – Audio Logic Recordings. There are songs that take some time to get you going. There are also songs like Fenske that make it happen – immediately.
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5. Mellow Dramatic (Komytea Remix) – Maxi Valvona – microCastle Music. The 4 versions of the title track are varied enough that there should be at least one for nearly everybody.
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6. The Boost (Original Mix) – Brendon Moeller – Connaisseur Recordings. I’m on a pretty healthy Brendon Moeller kick. A few mixes of his have been spending significant time in my headphones. The Boost could be my favorite track of the week. I’m pretty sure I heard a man say fiddlesticks.
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7. Avid Hustler (Original Mix) – John Selway & Dave Turov – CSM. Since the interview I did with Christian Smith I’ve been on the lookout for anything from John Selway.
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8. Câlin calé (Original) – Joris Delacroix – Wohlab. My description of this would fall short. Give them a listen.
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9. Dajarra (Worakls Remix) – Steve Nocerino – Airbus Recordings. This is a slow builder.
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10. Nedenumit (Original Mix) – Posh 111 – Barraca. As I was putting the tracks together for the mix (using headphones at time) this one was playing and Sam stopped me to ask if I had heard the El Prologo Remixes Pt 1.1. Barraca is making some good moves.
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 Seth's Picks of the Week 10th of September 2009: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Well, I missed Friday again. I came very close to making it by Saturday, but was pulled away to watch zombies slaughtered at the hands of Woody Harrelson and a kid who looks like the love child of Michael Cera and Andy Samburg. Maybe next week I’ll get back on schedule. A boatload of tracks hit the site and I had quite a time going through them all (well, most of them).
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1. Seasonal Dub (feat. MC Markie J) (P. Laoss Mix) – Gabriel le Mar – Thinner. Spend some time listening to the previews of this release in the shop. It has quite a bit going for it.
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2. Aaron (Original Mix) – Paul Kalkbrenner – BPitch Control. Aaron is one of those tracks that can be heard once and immediately cue up in your mind’s playlist.
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3. Fullness (Original Mix) – Kane Roth – Groom Rec. As I make my weekly trek through the new releases, many tracks initially strike me as either good for listening or good for dancing. Fullness falls into the latter category (Not that there’s anything wrong with the former).
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4. giasone (Original Mix) – Stefano Partanello – Code2 Records. I’m a big fan of this release. Loads of different sounds, but somehow all the pieces fit.
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5. Capricious (Original Mix) – Ben Wijay – Phreakin Recordings. Another dancer, Capricious does not cover a great deal of territory, and I don’t think it needs to. I hear it and imagine getting lost in a dark room surrounded by lots of people.
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6. Farley Johnson (Brendon Moeller Reshape) – Michel de Hey – Lilith. Some time ago Sam put me onto a Brendon Moeller mix and I’ve been on the lookout since. I like the way his mind and ears work.
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7. Nebelparder (Original Mix) – Steinmüller – Circledigital. Winner. Shall I say it again? Winner.
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8. We Are Living Here (Original Mix) – Kaito – Kompakt. Big, unapologetically pretty song on Kompakt.
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9. No Justice, Just Us (Original Mix) – LaChriz – Ilian Tape. One of my favorites of the week.
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10. Phasin (Original Mix) – Tim Susa – Potobolo Records. Phasin doesn’t quite fit in with the rest of the picks this week, but I had to include it in the list/mix. Bonkers. Techno Bonkers.

 

 Seth's Picks of the Week 10-04-09: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

As this post is going up Sunday, technically it’s the picks from last week. I took on some new duties at RV in a week that happened to coincide with my birthday, and I’m lucky enough to have friends who had me out celebrating Wednesday through Saturday. Needless to say, I had my hands full. Better late than never, right?
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1. Disconnected (Sascha Funke Mix) – Haito Göpfrich – Boxer Recordings. Both John and I were disappointed to find that Sascha Funke is not related to actor, analrapist, published author, and friend of Carl Weathers; Tobias Funke. None the less, it’s a good track.
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2. The Third Dream (Original Mix) – Zhe – DP-6 Records. I can’t say enough about this release. It’s been a long time since I’ve heard an album of this size retain quality throughout. Lots of tracks, lots of variety, lots of goodness.
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3. El Fuego (Berger Remix) – Benno Block & Derhardt – 040-Recordings. 040-Recordings seems to be popping up on my list frequently. I can’t help it. I like it.
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4. Dockyard (Original Mix) – Piemont – My Best Friend / MBF. This is going to be a big release from MBF. Shipyard is a great track as well.
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5. Cocktail Tokio (Original Mix) – Kresy And Handrus – Galvanic. Cocktail Tokio could be my favorite track of the week. If I didn’t work for an electronic music outfit, I would undoubtedly get strange looks from my coworkers for the things that happen at my desk when this one is coming through the cans.
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6. Disjointed (Original Mix) – Askani – Harkee Records. When I saw the cover for Revenge of the Lizards, I knew I was going to like it.
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7. Liberation (Estroe Remix) – Alemo – EevoNext. Liberation immediately reminded me of a track from a Patrice Baumel mix, which counts for a lot in my book.
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8. Ten Thousand Bridges (Original Mix) – Darius Syrossian – Breakout Audio. This is the first release we have received from Breakout Audio. I’m glad we did.
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9. Conga Loca (Original Mix) – Francesco Gemelli – Globox. Typically, Latin-flavored electronic music is not my cup of tea. I think that the real deal has such organic rhythm that it usually doesn’t translate well to something with programmed quantized beats. Conga Loca has hints, but just enough to sound good (to me) without making me wish I was listening to the Buena Vista Social Club, which is what usually happens.
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10. Bolka (Original) – Prescott, Paul Mad – Fairlads Digital Records. Another solid release and a good way to wrap things up. Until next time…. (hopefully on Friday instead of Sunday)

 

 Standard Podcast: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

This is one motley group of songs. For the most part, they’re either really techy, or really weird, and sometime they’re a bit of both. There are also some RV newcomers, so if you hear something you like, make sure to check out those links.
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1. I’m Down With R2D2 (Original Mix) – Jamie Jones – Crosstown Rebels. This one would have made it on title or artist alone, but I’ll be doggone if the music ain’t good too.
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2. Triangular Hour (Original Mix) – Burnski – Morris / Audio. The portion of Triangular House that is in the mix only gives you a hint of what’s in the song. The other two cuts on the release are winners.
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3. LNDN027 (Original Mix) – Garnica – Galaktika Records. Another tune that finds itself in good company on its release Sexy People EP, LNDN027 edged out the others, but barely.
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4. Gengis Khank (Original Mix) – Trieb – 11HZ Recordings. Again with the clever track names… and good music… and weirdness. One of my favorites this week.
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5. Black Forest (Original Mix) – Voko – 040-Recordings. Black Forest is trippy!
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6. Pluito (Original Mix) – Yan Oxygen – Packed Music. This is a bonafide, Grade A certified, SAE approved “good times will be had” track.
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7. Excited (Original Mix) – Djos’s Davis, John Modena – Fusion Recordings. I like the way this song moves.
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8. E.F.A. (Original Mix) – Reuben Keeney - sMACk Recordings. E.F.A. is one of the more “normal” sounding tracks of the lot, but don’t interpret that as borring.
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9. Temperamental (Manuel De La Mare Remix) – Mikas – Progressive Grooves Records. Temperamental brings it home.
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10. Techno Juice (Original Mix) – Glitter – Nuuktal Digital. More whacked-out music that gives way to some groovin’ techno.

 

 Standard Podcast: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

This week was pretty exciting for me. The top ten nearly picked itself. Adam Beyer, Lee Curtiss, Patrice Baumel, Matt(hew) John(son), Kiki by way of Visionquest… Wow. Enough talk. Hear this with your ears.

1. them from (Original Mix) – Daniel d.Curtis – Playtracks Records. I probably spent more time than I should have rearranging things in the mix to accommodate this track. It just works for me.

2. Reverse Caress (Matt John’s Tickle Mix) – Lee Curtiss / Matt John – Cityfox. Reverse Caress has a lot of strange things happening in it, but manages to retain a straightforward groove. It’s probably that Detroit water.

3. Crocodilian (Freza Remix) – Mike Healey – Cubism. This could be quite the crowd-pleaser.

4. Good Voodoo (Visionquest Remix) – Kiki – BPitch Control. Speaking of pleased crowds and Detroit, I’ve been waiting for this one to hit the site since DEMF. If you’d like to see Eddie B interview Lee Curtiss at DEMF and hear a little more about this song, click here.

5. Save As Document 1 (Baumel and Dos Santos Threesixty Remix) – Eric B Young – Manual Music. Both Baumel and Manual always catch my eyes and ears, so you can imagine my reaction when this release came across the desk. Score. Times 2.

6. It’s Only Flesh (What We Call Brain) (Glitterbug Remix) – Mathias Schaffhäuser & friends – Ware. I’m always pleased when a release with a cool cover also contains good music.

7. For The Deep (Original Mix) – Jake Childs – Operating System. For the Deep is right- you can get lost in this one.

8. Acid Bath (Satoshi Fumi Acid Rain Mix) – Dave Storm – Cabrio. Despite being a guitar player, I’m easily put off by the kind of “deep house” that really sounds like a terrible lounge band with smooth jazz guitar and a drum machine. Conversely, Acid Bath is on the money with one small guitar part that adds a nice texture, and it’s just enough.

9. Count (Original Mix) – Special Guests – 11HZ Recordings. Kennedy, space, and techno. Yes.

10. Death By House (Adam Beyer & Jesper Dahlbäck Remix) – Len Faki – Cocoon Recordings. I can’t think of a better way to end a mix than with Adam Beyer and Jesper Dahlback rocking it out on Cocoon.

 

 Seth's Picks of the Week 09-11-09: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

It’s that time of the week again ladies and gents. The past few weeks I feel as if the mixes have been somewhat themed. This week, we’re all over the place. From laid back to bangin’ techno, we’ve got it all. Well, unless you like trance and electro house, in which case you most likely stopped reading this blog a long time ago.
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1. Equinox (Original Mix) – John Daly – International Records Recordings. I think it’s difficult to pull off a good danceable feel at 118 BPM. John Daly succeeds, and I’ll attribute the success to nice hi-hat parts and the bass.
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2. Train Ride (Original Mix) – Dlay – Sudup Recordings. More good music from some of our new labels and artists (both of which can be said of Dlay and Sudup). Great track for early in a mix or lounging around.
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3. Minor (Original Mix) – DAVI – Outside the Box Music. This is not the played-out prog at which the cool kids scoff. Check out the other two cuts from Minor EP.
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4. Talk Balk (Dan Ferritto Remix) – Jog N Pitch – Southern Lights Recordings. Get up and dance. Go with the bass.
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5. Praha (Original Mix) – Mint Dj – Binge Records. I pulled all three songs from Praha – so should you.
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6. Tangente (Stefano Sleepless Remix) – Roberto Romero – Productos BMM. This release covers a good deal of deep and techy ground. The Mindform remix is also worth a listen.
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7. Alan Delon (Original Mix) – Stig – Animal Play Minimal. I’d like to know why Stig decided to call a track Alan Delon, and why he thought such a track should sound the way it does. Is “Alan” missing the “i” on purpose? Is it a secret message? Is Paul really dead? Regardless – it’s whacked out proper.
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8. Bananas (Original Mix) – Daniel Jaramillo – Mindsounds. Don’t be alarmed. There is no connection to the Linda Perry/Gwen Stefani monstrosity of the same name. This shit actually is b-a-n-a-n-a-s.
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9. Schnipseljagt (Live version) – Dreher & Smart – 3000° Grad. Not a multitude of sounds here, but of what’s there, everything serves a purpose. That purpose: well, you know…
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10. Nao Safa (Original Mix) – Eri2 – SK Supreme Records. A darker shade of techno.

.As you can see by this scan of an autographed picture of my good friend Alain Delon, (which I assure you I keep at my desk at all times and was not pulled from Google images at 4:26 PM EST on the 4th of September 2009) I am in a position to tell you that Alain wants you to smoke, generally look sexy, brush up on your Godard and Antonioni, and frequent Resonant Vibes. If there’s one thing Alain won’t stand for, it’s Beatport.
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 Top 10: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

It’s that time again. It’s becoming more and more difficult to make these lists. The sheer volume of music to peruse is getting out of hand (a good problem to have). This week was discotastic. I toyed around with making an all disco top ten, but I try to walk a line between what I like and what other people might enjoy, and decided against it. There is disco to be found, but the list transitions to some proggy territory and ends on a techy note.

1. Six (Original Mix) – Tim Toh – Philpot Records. Six has just a hint of a Latin feel. Fun track.

2. Retrofusion (Original Mix) – Demarkus Lewis – The Source. This funky groover will suck you in fast.

3. Perpetual Flow (Original Mix) – Vernon & DaCosta – Robsoul. Robsoul churns out a winner yet again. The bass in Perpetual Flow is reason enough to pick it up.

4. Disco Dust (Original Mix) – Zee – Devoted Records. Disco Dust? Yes please. Great basslines and a juice harp clavinet that sits just right in the mix give Disco Dust that feel of soul from the days of old.

5. Todash (Original Mix) – Jairus Miller – Source Of Gravity. Todash, aside from being a great track, has enough funk to be quite useful when moving from disco to something more deep and proggy (which happens around the 14 minute mark).

6. Again (Dejan Dex Remix) – Denny Trajkov – Tokyo Red Recordings. At the risk of sounding foolish telling people how to spend money amid tough economic times, buy every track on this record.

7. The Summer is Comming (UGLH Remix) – Tex-Rec – CVM Records. Big track. Big. Just when you think you’re safe… BAM.

8. Graviton (Johannes Heil Mix) – D. Diggler – Resopal Schallware. This compilation of great music is worth several looks and listens. I could have easily picked others for the top ten, but there’s just something about Graviton.

9. Magic Monkey (Original Mix) – Peter Gun – Air Snare Records. Magic Monkey? Come on. Who doesn’t want to hear a track called Magic Monkey?

10. Dolphin (Original Mix) – Schubert – Aurora Music. It’s just this man’s opinion, but I think I saved the best for last. It isn’t the biggest speaker blower – but it’s at a good tempo and steady – and would keep me groovin’ along happily from start to finish.

 

 08-14-09 Top 10: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

What a week. The music uploaded to RV over the past few days has been nothing short of fantastic. I found so many good tunes that I could have easily done a top forty – and it’s just going to keep getting better. The top ten has a few familiar labels and artists, but the majority of them are new to the site. If you like what you hear in the mini-mix, head to the store where you will not only find music that will make you want to get down, but also have the opportunity to test drive the new version of the RV Media Player. Get in there! This mix is for all the techno kids out there. My last few lists have leaned towards deep and a bit proggy with a sprinkling of techno. Given the nature of all this new shit (big ups to The Dude – the new shit being some of the best techno labels in the world) I couldn’t help but bring it techy this week.

1. Acid Guanaca (Original Mix) – Grünbox – Trapez. This subtly arranged track has a little bit of everything.

2. Road to The Glass House (Original Mix) – Dimitry Liss – BIT Records Mexico. Longtime friend of RV Bit Records Mexico puts out our two proggy winners on The Glass House EP.

3. Matchpoint (Original Mix) – Fahrenheit (FR) – Low Battery Recordings. As I was sifting through the shortlist for this week, I marked this track a definite keeper the first time through. It sounds like two songs mixed together to make one. It’s strage, but it works.

4. Black Pearl (Spektre Remix) – Andre Sobota – Spectrum Recordings (UK). Dark grooving techno…

5. Funk and fc (Original Mix) – Applescal – Traum Schallplatten. This track is HUGE, and would drive any crowd out of their minds.

6. Atomic Germ (Original Mix) – BCR Boys – Aenaria Music. After the dance floor destroying drone of Funk and fc, I needed to bring things down a notch. The frequently impressive Aenaria Music and BCR Boys deliver the goods with Atomic Germ, a track that can cool things off without losing attention.

7. Thessaloniki (Original Mix) – Paul Bardsley – Disclosure Project Recordings. Great trippy and washed out (in a good way) techno.

8. Kopenhagen (Original Mix) – Nico Defrost & Dennis Dithmar – Operating System. Cheers to Nico Defrost & Dennis Dithma for a cut that I am either unable or unwilling to stop playing.

9. The Deepest Dream (Original Mix) – DJ Hary – UTC Music. Bouncy but not quite whimsical techno.

10. Another Reason To Stay (Original Mix) – James Scannell – Abstract Logic Recordings. A good note on which to end. Fun.

 

 Seth's Picks of the Week 08-07-2009: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download