Sound Pellegrino Thermal Team (Orgasmic and Teki Latex) are about to hit North America, here’s the updated tour schedule:
25.6.2010 Velvet - Montreal
27.6.2010 Social - Toronto
28.6.2010 No Rule - Baltimore
29.6.2010 Dance (Arena) - Los Angeles
02.7.2010 La Sexta - Tijuana
03.7.2010 Smartbar - Chicago
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Bonus cut 1:a preview of our forthcoming Thermal Team remix of the new Mikix The Cat (a.k.a Momma’s Boy a.k.a Impatient Mike) feat. Shannon on the awesome Abracada Records, dropping on beatport
If you have been interested in electronic music at some point during the past 10 years and you don't know who Para One is, you are both foolish and lucky at the same time. Foolish because the man has been all over the place, remixing and collaborating with the biggest names in the game, releasing some of the first Institubes records and touring like a madman. Lucky because you have yet to discover a plethora of amazing tracks, remixes, albums and productions that tap into every genre, elegantly fuse every style together, go in a different direction each time, displaying a certain genius in rhythmic intricateness and harmonic bliss. From producing TTC to creating the techno masterpiece “Epiphanie”, from providing not one but two widely acclaimed remixes for Boys Noize (among countless others) to signing the score to indie cinema success "Naissance des Pieuvres", from dropping the grimiest raps to arranging the most moving pieces of classical music, Para One is THE producer's producer. He has been supporting us since the beginning of Sound Pellegrino and it was only a matter of time before he would start submitting us some tracks.
"Toadstool" and "Kiwi" were tailor-made for Sound Pellegrino, while having nothing to do with the tropical sound some people have understandably pigeonholed us in. At the same time these are fresh, modern, poppy, melancolic dancefloor tunes that proudly and fully represent pure Sound Pellegrino class, french savoir-faire, and a certain brand of Roland Garros house.
"Toadstool" is a tech house tour de force, a detailed sonic whirlwind of morphing mouth noises arranged into minimal tech funk with vocal chops reminiscent of Jean Michel Jarre's "Zoolook" if it was re-arranged by the Yin Yang Twins. Pon the remix, major Sound Pellegrino inspiration Jesse Rose blesses us with the ultimate tool. His version is straight to the point, groovy, obsessive. The term "Made To Play" has never made more sense, and as true fans of the man and his label we are absolutely humbled by this demonstration of method and style.
"Kiwi" is music that will make your girlfriend say "I hate that electro crap you always listen to but I'm in love with that Kiwi song can you play it again" and then you'll go "you don't get it, how many times do I have to tell you, it's not electro it's house" but by the time you finish your sentence she will be biting your lip, one hand caressing your neck and the other reaching for your credit card in an attempt to force you into getting that Beatport account you never thought would be necessary. Good girl. In the tradition of poignant uber-melodic Para One tracks from the Epiphanie days (think "Liege", "Ski Lesson Blues"), "Kiwi" is a perfect techno pop song reminiscent of early Border Community releases but with a slightly stronger will to "let go" emotionally, while still hiding behind the wall of the country house to cry for vanished summer loves.
Noob's remix injects a dose of dancefloor pragmatism to "Kiwi", bringing some techno muscle and a little bit of restraint to the heartbreaking melody, like picking up a fight with a random dude in a club just because you're mad at yourself for breaking your girlfriend's heart. More masculine and more suited to darker sets, this one's a sure shot for tech-house aficionados of all kinds.
I'm running out of girlfriend metaphors so let's bring out the Swedish sea monsters to help describe Tony Senghore's masterful take on "Kiwi". This techno viking once again metaphorically tells the listener that "if he came here", he might as well "party", unleashing underwater roars on top of disciplinary drakkar beats, turning the catchy melody into a whistled scandinavian war chant.
The name Nouveau Yorican conjures up visions of dance music truthful to the patterns and grooves of classic house, but done with the technology and sounds of today, in the same way that the Art Nouveau movement used modern materials to forge classic and natural shapes.
Nouveau Yorican is the brainchild of two major players in today's house scene: the charismatic Gina Turner (also half of powerful DJ duo Staccato) co-produces the sounds and lays down slick vocals while godfather of modern Dutch scene Laidback Luke lends a hand, assuming the role of the quintessential "man in the shadows". For both of them, this is a small step away from their usual territory towards more jacking sounds reminiscent of the best of golden era Chicago House, with a twist of latin-flavored New York stomp and backed by the discreet presence of the almighty Dutch artillery. A modern take on New York's Puerto Rican artistic identity seen through the eyes and ears of an asian Dutch house virtuoso and a half-sicilian/half-latino part-time NYC, part-time LA resident? This is our version of the Puerto Rican house renaissance.
“Boriqua“ ties in to the Sound Pellegrino collection through a common bond to the great tradition of jacking house. "In the Beginning there was Jack, and Jack had a groove", that groove is the common ground for a lot of today's electronic artists no matter what direction they chose to take of whatever micro-genre they claim to represent. Combining synth stabs with elegant retro vibes, “Boriqua“ will please those in search of the most purist Chicago sound while clearly having the sonic firepower and modern crisp production it takes to find its way into every major DJ's playlist. Plus Gina's sensual spanish vocals will have all the fly ladies dig in their closet for that old "butter pecan" Wu Tang tee shirt.
Remixing “Boriqua“ is a challenging exercise, which Sound Pellegrino alumni Douster, Sandro Silva and Harvard Bass all executed brilliantly, each putting forward a different aspect of the track and merging it with their world. Douster manages to keep it sexy and minimal while taking it to the underground caves where the warp zone between Lyon and Buenos Aires is hidden, and where dinosaurs carry guns like in Jurassic Park IV. Sandro Silva unleashes the heavy dutch lazerfest on top of a groovy rickety carnival beat (expect more Sound Pellegrino action from Sandro in the near future). The Harvard Bass version brings back sweaty disco images from our childhood through a symphony of synthetic strings of life, swiftly mutating into a massive electro house banger. A little something for everyone, and lots of Boriqua love.
You might know the man from his frequent Mowgli and Crookers collaborations, his work as a sound engineer for Zombie Disco Squad, Riva Starr and Hanna Holland to name a few, his Deadfish and Dirtybird releases and his countless remixes. The thing that ties it all together is his genuine love for the exploration of sound, production techniques, and his search for the perfect sample. “Minimood” and “Rawmania” where both created by the Master in one night, they should be considered as a cohesive project rather than two unrelated pieces of music, they reveal two faces of the same beast, two emotions from the same heart, two sides of the same coin, two shadows at different hours of the same day, two meatballs from the same dish of rich musical pasta.
Remix-wise, our favourite Bern duo Round Table Knights provided a mini-funky-techy house monster, surpassing all of our expectations. A moving example of tasteful, intricate yet groovy dance music with an infrabass that will tickle your brain as much as it massages your butt. And French upcomers Beataucue delivered this merciless musical rollercoaster ride that has "hit" written all over it in day-glo stickers, making us all feel like we're 500 years old in the process. But it's all good.
L-Vis 1990. English bloke. One of the most innovative and talked-about producers of the year, with the talent, creativity and artistic vision to back it up, not only through music but also video and artwork (he is responsible for the massive Riton and Dance Area videos, as well as his own, supported by Michel Gondry's production company Partizan). Championed by blogs, sitting on top of a pile of hypemachine and resident advisor charts, the buzz on L-Vis' releases (on Mad Decent, Dress 2 Sweat) and remixes (for Riton & Primary 1, Buraka, Crystal Fighters, Gucci Vump) is the kind that comes once a year and changes the face of underground club music. We could spend hours explaining how he is the new incarnation of UK bass / club culture and how he blends years of garage heritage with post-modern tribal house, but it's a lot simpler than that: L-Vis 1990 is his own music genre. He's a true phenomenon, and the sensation that we are witnessing the imminent explosion of a massive success has never been so tangible.
Slightly heavier than your average Sound Pellegrino release while still maintaining focus on groove as our primary criterion, this single marks our first exploration of "riddim" territory, AKA we're definitely taking the Eurostar to this one. Somewhere in between UK funky and dark African rave lies Compass, a strong, obvious, destructive and fierce hit that could be interpreted as a punchy follow up to L-Vis' previous single United Groove. Already played by the whole universe from big name BBC Radio 1 DJs to Grenoble techno aficionados, Compass is bound to become a must-play, and we'd like to apologize in advance for the loss of your dear little bedroom speakers. On the infamous "virtual flip", Zahonda serves as the bubbly, quieter yet lethal house tool. Obsessive, repetitive and muddy, it's the chant of Mother Earth reclaiming the dancefloor, or something to raise your arms and worship the Sun to.
The Compass remix is provided by none other than Christian Martin, half of the notorious Martin Brothers and one of the heads of best-in-class San Francisco-based house label Dirtybird. This is another case of "we are so psyched to have one of the inspirations behind the creation of Sound Pellegrino do a remix for us". His take on Compass results in an amazing slice of detailed, elegant and vicious electro-tech that will surprise and win the favors of DJs from all around the spectrum. London's Greena remixes Zahonda into an immediate funky DJ friendly stomper that will leave crowds all shook up, wrapping up this essential single that will undoubtedly give to young underground prince L-Vis 1990 the well-deserved title of "King of Bass".
There are times In the carreer of a top international DJ/Producer where things get a little bit out of control. Times when the glitter, the glam and the fame get a little out of hand. Times when the whole "travelling from the hotel to the jet, and from the jet to the 5000 capacity venue via a helicopter made of gold" - thing kinda blurs one's vision of day to day reality. In times like these, it's important for said DJ/Producer to take a step back, return to anonymity and focus on the music that keeps the underground clubs buzzing. The sweaty, dirty, forward-thinking, genre-defying, risk-taking house music that drives the cool kids crazy. That is exactly what the mysterious entity hiding behind GUCCI VUMP is doing with the release of Sha! Shtil!, The Boogiemanand Casablanco on Sound Pellegrino.
If we wanted to tell you who Gucci Vump was, let's just say we get into some big fat legal trouble with legions of record company people, managers and agents and it would cause an unprecedented diplomatic incident. He is such an important and heavy money-generating figure in the international DJ scene that every piece of information regarding every single one of his release shakes the whole industry up. It's an amazing and exciting thing but we feel that such a media tsunami would turn Sound Pellegrino into a relentless money-making-attention-grabbing-hype-creating machine and ultimately cause more harm than good to the label. The humble little craftsmen of house music that we are much prefer to keep it on the down low. Therefore Gucci Vump's mysterious identity shall not be revealed.
Evidently there has been a lot of talk and speculation surrounding this release and the identity behind the alias "Gucci Vump". People have not quite nailed it yet and all the names that have been thrown around the internet in the last couple of months have all revealed themselves to be phoney. The mystery remains, and the buzz is growing, as gucci vump appears to be playlisted by more and more VIP DJs from around the globe, leaving people asking "who is this guy and what the hell is a Vump?". Mystery and controversy are one thing but when it comes to the music itself, Gucci Vump delivers.
Sha! Shtil! was inspired by a traditional Klezmer song telling the story of a Rabbi dancing like a madman to get rid of the demon in him. According to the general feedback we received, from tastemakers to regular weekend clubbers, the track is a smash hit capable of pleasing every dancefloor. People are just too happy to hear that lady sing in Yiddish, and the production is so crisp, it makes it the perfect tool for every dj to turn the techno party into RABBI-DOME VOLUME FIVE.
Totally in touch with the current interest in local scenes and the merging of fhe folkloric and the futuristic, gucci vump adds a political dimension to the "conceptual sample" game by using bits and pieces from both Jewish (as we heard with Sha! Shtil!) and Arabic traditional music on the same EP. The Boogieman could be the background for a fantasy Indiana Jones pursuit scene in a bazaar that ends up in an indian pit of snakes. And when he received Casablanco Orgasmic instantly described it as "Raï meets UK Funky". The comparison is a little bit "pulling it by the hair" as we say in French, but the tracks are two immense bangers.
On remix duties we have the man of the moment L-VIS 1990, known for his recent releases on Mad Decent and Dress2Sweat, building anticipation for his forthcoming Sound Pellegrino release Compass/Zahonda by providing a deadly yet classy take on "Sha, Shtil!" including one of the most venimous typhoon-shaped basslines heard in a while. Last but not least, Downtown, one half of star duo Renaissance Man, re-invents The Boogieman as a brilliant dubby tech house odyssey complete with sitar stabs and menacing howling noises, a guaranteed hit on deeper dancefloors.
Already supported and played by the likes of Sinden, Erol Alkan, Annie Mac, Fake Blood, Feadz, Edu K, Style Of Eye and many others.
Our Finnish friends and Sound Pellegrino members Renaissance Man have just wrapped this exclusive mix for Sixpack France, making it the third installment in a quite irregular series of musical projects, initiated in 1998 with Feadz' Stagnation Reversed mixtapes, followed by Orgasmic & Tekitek's Sixpack Anthem EP a couple of months ago.
Stream or download this hour of sparse and less sparse house, including a couple of exclusives and special edits by the boys themselves.
This mix will be soon paired with the super limited release of a tee shirt designed by Finland studio Kokoro et moi (also responsible for Renaissance Man's logo and identity), and honestly I'm just posting this with the hope that Lionel will send me one... Medium s'il te plaît...
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