Selections 007
The seventh set of Selections arrives as October begins and summer draws firmly to a close. We introduce fresh and exciting releases from young labels and talents while also revisiting imprints that we’ve showcased in previous editions (Seekers, Undersound, Partout).These dancefloor oriented selections harness that late summer energy while pointing towards the cosier and darker months ahead. The first few tracks are in a house/tech house vein, while the later ones lean towards techno and acid. We’ve added a special bonus track to our usual 5 to celebrate this spooky season, and it’s not just any bonus track – we love it just as much as the rest of the tunes here!
Franco Falsini - Zolle [Baffling Noise]
Seekers sub-label Baffling Noise returns with a new 4-tracker from Italian veteran Franco Falsini. A man who started out doing prog rock in the 1970s (as a member of Sensations’ Fix) and then made the proto-house classic ‘Feels Good’ in 1982 (as Electra, famously sampled by Jamie Principle), Falsini then spent the next two decades putting on raves, festivals and street parties – first spearheading the rave movement with his live outfit Open Spaces and label Interactive Test, after which he delved deeply into psytrance. In recent years, his music has found a home within the modern dancefloor community, with DJs playing tracks from Interactive Test and labels repressing his music. We even featured him in our Say What article Sleepers: Unlocking The Unknown with Franco Falsini in 2018.
On this EP, he and Seekers introduce a new era for his sound. Recorded during lockdown last year, these are new tracks which don’t exactly fit with either the prog rock days, or the bubbly Italian 90s house, or with the sense-sational sounds of psytrance, though remnants of these past lives do make their presence felt. In fact, in line with other veteran producers (such as the late Richard H Kirk when he revived Cabaret Voltaire in 2020 with the masterpiece Shadow Of Fear), Falsini curates a mature sound, quite experimental, which will still appeal to today’s fans. The EP reflects also the pandemic mood, and not by following the now-expected downtempo feel. The beats can be slow or fast, but either way he has the dancefloor within him. Track titles like ‘Freedom In A Dark Age’ symbolise music as a medicine or form of escapism during dark times.
All of the tracks are unique and interesting, showing him stretching out with tripping, harmonically-intriguing rollers, our favourite of which is the funky, flip-flopping ‘Zolle’. Irresistible, perfect for the dance, and with plenty of attitude. 83 years old this year, Falsini continues to show his dedication for dance music and we salute him!
A reissue of a much sought-after self-released 1993 album by the prolific Japanese producer Takahiro Suzuki, this vinyl version of the originally CD-only Thought arrives on Junki Inoue’s already must-have label SAIESEI. Inspired by the Detroit techno and early house music that had been slowly gaining attention on Japanese shores, Suzuki confected his own restrained yet deeply-felt take on these formative styles of today’s electronic dance music. The basic structure of ‘27pm’ sounds like it could be found on an early 90s Italian dream house B-side, while the melodically innocent bleep motifs and delicate breakbeats are straight off a pioneering Warp record. A contemporary take on ‘27pm’ via re-edits makes the track like new. We remember some of Suzukiski’s EPs being bought and played out a few years back, and the delightful effect that tracks like ‘Sargasso’ had on the dancefloor.
As Masaaki Hara observes in the liner notes for this reissue, Suzuki’s music “was very good at making people move on the dance floor, but there are introspective moments in [his] music that take you into your own inner world.” This is the beauty of this carefully curated, re-edited and annotated vinyl reissue: Thought by name, and ‘thought’ by nature.
Miles Mercer - Astralogic [Accessory Records]
Miles Mercer’s vinyl debut is also the first release on his and Simic’s imprint Accessory Records, run out of NYC. It’s a fantastic first release with great presentation too. The outsized type on the centre label indicates the character of the music: bold, no-nonsense and high-impact tracks for the peak of peak time. The cuts on the A side mix early 90s Detroit techno and European trance with a contemporary tech house flavour. However, it’s the epic 10-minute trip of ‘Astralogic’ on the B that makes it into our selections. An exercise in control and release, the track takes a full three and a half minutes to really warm up and, once it does, it just rolls and rolls. It’s tribal, deep and haunting, while also sexy, dark and playful. It’s bound to keep the crowd fixed firmly on the dancefloor.
Michael Space - Mental box [Sonic Interface Records]
We move to another young label where the tracks are produced by the owner himself. Berlin-based Italian Michael Space uses his label Sonic Interface as an outlet for his own futuristic and genre-blending productions, reflecting this stylistic vibe in the very cool artwork too. The Parallel Dimension EP – the sophomore release on the label, two tracks from which have been premiered on the famous ballacid youtube channel – contains three club-ready tracks and closes with a lovely experimental/downtempo track.We love the political undertones on the A1 ‘Reform’, but the track that first drew us in was the A2 ‘Mental Box’, a track with lots of interesting elements but not too overbearing and great for a clubby environment. Cheeky sounds, robotic vocals, a catchy melody, stripped back military drums, an updated 80s bassline: it’s got it all, in a mix of techno and deep-sea electro that brings together the worlds of Berlin and Ibiza. Like Star Wars meets James Bond, it’s an adventure with twists and turns, ending with an unexpected section of gorgeous harmonies.
Scatterbaux - Womp Bucket [Undersound Recordings]
We’ve previously featured Undersound on Selections 004 (their 18th release by J. Mono of Wedding Acid Group), and here they are again continuing their support of underground electro talent. Label head Giovanni Veccaro has an excellent digger’s ear and on this 20th release he brings us the hardware jams of largely unknown producer Scatterbaux.All four tracks on the EP show off the producer’s way with analogue gear, mixing ideas from acid, braindance, electro and IDM into dancefloor magic. We feature the acid fireworks of EP closer ‘Womp Bucket’: the track is emotional, groovy and uplifting, with curious and compelling melodies that recall but don’t repeat Aphex Twin and the Railway Raver. Look out for ‘Chamber 27’ too, recently played in Berlin by Andrew James Gustav.
Saverio Celestri - Halloween Track [Partout]
Our special bonus track! The perfect sound for this season, ‘Halloween Track’ rounds off this set of selections with its fun and spooky vibes. Synths like a witch’s cackle set off the creepy harmonies played by Dracula on the organ, while underneath the steady march of trolls’ feet on the bassline mark out the rhythm. Saverio is a super solid producer (and DJ!), and all four tracks on this EP can be brought into play. It’s a good purchase for any DJ anywhere. It's also the first EP on the label's Italian series, continuing its concept of showcasing artists from different parts of the world.
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