Here is a fresh round of deep house cuts for you to taste, a pretty decent variety of the deep, introspective, and dubby tunes, with more colorful, sociable, disco-tinged selections. Hope you enjoy!

Koen – Otherside – Otherside EP

First up is an elusive new producer from Italian imprint Aenaria Recordings named Koen. Now, since there is next to nothing out there in the way of information about this guy, assuming he is a different person than Koen Groeneveld, I’d rather take a moment to point out the unique and appealing art direction behind Aenaria. It’s rare to see this sort of branding–an ancient Greek-inspired art direction, which is especially rare in the realm of dance music, but Aenaria has an interesting form of iconography their four sub-components– Aenaria Music, Aenaria Tribal, Aenaria Tech, and Aenaria Chillout. Definitely check it out if you’re interested in seeing how a label sets itself apart visually.

Bearweasel – Button Down the Moose – Things EP

I’ve been into Bearweasel for a little while now, I’ve always found it intriguing that a male-female couple could come together from opposite ends of the British mainland to create some of the deepest and most reserved compositions. This new track appears on Tsuba, a label I’ve always known to release exemplary deep house, but to be honest, I’ve never been drawn to any of it until this release, which includes an incredible remix from dub master Brendan Moeller aka Echologist (aka Beat Pharmacy). I love the subtly resonant ride cymbal in this track, which along with the other carefully-chosen percussive elements creates a dubbed out form of deep house that serves more to relax than to excite, which if you’ve been following my musical discoveries, would be a perfectly suitable aural effect to pursue.

Nikola Gala – Broken Chords – Keep Walking EP

This track from Nikola Gala‘s Keep Walking EP strikes me as the perfect sound to exemplify Freerange Records and the direction they are pursuing, it’s evolved slowly and humbly over the past few years, but to be quite frank, it hasn’t changed too drastically. Instead, it has become incredibly noticeable to the seasoned ear, my only hope is that it will remain to sound as fresh and upbeat as it has to this day. The warm and sexy hum of the backing keys remains reserved for most of the track, but when paired with those classic piano keys, it’s tough to resist doing what the vocal sample commands, which is to “feel it.”

Schatrax – Champagne Dancer – Champagne Dancer EP

Here’s an example of a record I was drawn to initially because of the album cover, which features Aretha Franklin. The single is called Champagne Dancer, and it’s by Schatrax out on a label called Fear of Flying. While I was expecting some sort of vocal incorporating Ms. Franklin’s unmistakably impeccable voice, I was disappointed not to hear it, but was instantly redeemed upon hearing the nostalgic selection of classic deep house tones, the most prominent of which being the bouncing, buoyant bassline and filtered synths that repeat and descend…I don’t know though, I almost want to find an a capella of Aretha and throw it on top of this track.

Today I have a few deep cuts that I’ve recovered from the great musical beyond, a few of them have this classic deep house feel, listening to them almost feels like re-educating myself about what I missed when Green Day and Rage Against the Machine comprised the vast majority of my musical horizons…can you blame me? While I was playing N64 at 10 years old, incredible music was being made and likely lost to the sands of time. Even still, you hear some of these tracks and can’t help but feel a connection to the past.

Evren Ulusoy – Histoire D’amour – Histoire D’amour EP

Perhaps I’m getting exceptionally good at recognizing peoples’ nationality based solely on their names, Evren Ulusoy is a good example, and with the release of Histoire D’amour, this Turkish producer brings it back to the classic days of deep, sensual pads, and reserved hi-hat selections. I could do without the vocal, but the warm blanket-like melody floating on top of the beat is more than enough to demand some serious play time on my speakers.

Alfredo HP – Yeke – Summer Special

Brindisi-bred Alfredo HP takes me back in time as well, but in a completely different way than the above-posted Ulusoy. There is a minimal techno thread in this track off a compilation from Recycle Records called Summer Special that pulsates through the grime, giving this track a very dirty (in a good way) sense of personality. There are samples of what sounds like the subway, which make this fitting, given the textures one would find on the bottom of those tracks…it’s rare to hear texture in deep house music, but I am sensing quite a bit in this one, in addition to the nostalgic details. Good stuff.

Rene Breitbarth – Sugar 2 – Salt & Sugar EP

If you read Blog.H34 regularly, you know how much I admire the barrage of hard work constantly emanating from Rene Breitbarth‘s studio. I find it astounding just how often this guy releases EP’s– this year on the first of every month, the majority of them come out as part of a series on the Deep Data imprint, but what’s even more surprising is the quality of the releases, there is almost always at least one track on each EP that is worth the purchase, make sure you give this guy some time if you are hooked, but not as locked in like I am.

Andre Crom & Martin Dawson – Temptation – Gonna Be Alright EP

Berlin-based Off Recordings dropped a double bomb on the deep charts earlier this summer with a compilation and an EP, the latter of which includes this track by Andre Crom and Martin Dawson (aka King Roc), two heavy-hitter producers who came together to fashion this driving, slightly progressive yet unmistakably deep tune. I suppose, given the release’s stickiness on the Beatport Deep House charts, that I don’t need to plug it as much as the less-recognized, yet equally-deserving releases I like to share with you all, but even still, it’s enjoyable and definitely worth a listen/buy if you haven’t come across it yet. Love those bassline harmonies!

Alright, so I’ve apologized like half a dozen time already this summer for being a but lax on the posting, but now that the Boot Camp program is over, and I have my life back, at least for this week, I hope to do a little bit of catching up with you all…there’s a ton of great music out and on the way. Today I have a selection of electronic moods, as we all cool down here in NYC from a blistering-hot August, it’s all clouds and rain this week.

Oriol – Coconut Coast – Night and Day

Oriol is Planet Mu’s new signing– and holy hot damn is he a good one.  This Cambridge-based producer of Trinidadian and Spanish heritage brings straight fire to my speakers with shards of 8 and 16-bit memories, a Sonic the Hedgehog-esque sense of adventure (it’s all about the xylophones baby), all ground with a sub-backed Sega-style bassline and melodies that give Coconut Island, and Oriol’s full-length Night and Day must-listen status if you dig this upbeat and wildly inventive tune.

Pale Sketcher – The Playgrounds Are Empty (Slumber Mix) – Pale Sketches: Demixed

You may have heard Jesu‘s Pale Sketcher project here and there in the past, but today marks a comprehensive new chapter in the Pale Sketcher continuum, with Ghostly‘s release of Pale Sketches: Demixed. I say continuum instead of saga or catalogue because Demixed is reborn from 2007′s album Pale Sketches, but this is anything but a re-hash. Tones of Justin Broadrick’s wide variety of musical leanings, from dub to shoegaze to metal are all on display, these tracks are powerful and emotive in a way that contrasts nicely to the Jesu material I hold in equally high regard.

Panther God – CNTRLR – Nightshade

Panther God’s Nightshade EP has sat in my downloads folder forever before I recently came across it and realized what I had been missing out on…and I’m kicking myself, because this EP from Florida-based producer Paul Gaeta has some very solid tracks, including the single CNTRLR, which I just discovered there WAS a remix contest for, it’s over, but you can still grab the stems and play if you have musical aspirations. I love the vibes coming from end sequence of this EP, looking forward to what comes next.

Nwachukwu – Wayward Pad

Here’s a fun little tidbit I came across while stalking for more information about Oriol, I believe it’s the only artist he’s following on Soundcloud, named Nwachukwu, who made this very tasty synth pad DJ tool/ambient dance tune available for free on his SC page. I will be keeping my eyes and ears out for more from this fella.

As of this past Sunday, I am now residing in NYC while I work toward my MFA in Design & Technology at Parsons, part of The New School. I am attending an introductory program referred to quite accurately as, “Boot Camp.” This has to be the most rigorous pace I’ve ever worked, but the benefits are quite clear– a solid foundation in Code, Web, and Design to prepare for the challenges to come during the regular semester. At any rate, you’ll have to excuse any lack of activity over the next few weeks while I dedicate myself to getting the most out of this program. Fortunately, we’re being tasked with keeping blogs that serve as our public record of experiencing the material covered, so you can check that out if you’re interested what I’m up to. Now without any further ado, on to the music!

Weed – Cody Girl – DC Hope

I’ve been musing for a while about the upcoming release of Weed, the band that has been keeping heads itching and bobbing simultaneously. Well, DC Hope is finally out, and if you’re into indie rock, psychedelic, lo-fi, or chillwave, then you ought to give this unique slice of Brooklyn-style “Bedrock” a listen. Weed frontman Will Anderson is moving to Vancouver (just as I am finally in NYC! Damn!) at the end of the week, and that means new experiences, new influences, and new reasons to be excited for releases like this. I did the album artwork and provided some art direction for the excellent accompanying Canuxpos tee shirt.

Foxes in Fiction – 15 Ativan (Sing Leaf Remix)

I was recently contacted by a couple of musicians who actually make good fits within the music content around Blog.H34, I rarely post tracks unless there’s a specific link to my tastes and the multi-genre musical palette I paint with on this blog. Sing Leaf is one such submission, who had recently played a show with Foxes in Fiction, and submitted this remix of his for my enjoyment. I am definitely liking the slow-disco pace of the beat, the tropical percussive accents (both in terms of tone and sequence), an upbeat and original take on the original track from Foxes in Fiction.

Guilty Ghosts – The Everlasting Evening – (single)

The second of today’s lucky submissions to be posted caught my eye in my inbox when I read “…if you like Team Sleep, Grouper,” two musical acts that I love…only how could one go about mixing sounds as disparate as Chino Moreno of the Deftones and Team Sleep crew’s West Coast lethargic drum and guitar machinations with Grouper’s disarming lo-fi and inky blue tone? Guilty Ghosts has set about creating a sort of sad drone, this pop-tinged track has a worldly sense and a mascara-black allure, check out his bandcamp for more.

Christopher Willits – Light Into Branches – Tiger Flower Circle Sun

Christopher Willits had one of the earliest releases I’d ever heard on Ghostly, no doubt one of the very reasons I got into the label in the first place. He has a new release out called Tiger Flower Circle Sun, which includes this track– a relaxed, slightly psychedelic piece that waxes the late 1960′s while remaining boldly contemporary and experimental, an affirmation that Mr. Willits is still up to the type of inventive and surprisingly-palatable guitar-based experimentation we got into three or so years ago.

These last two images are disturbing, be warned.

Although I generally post music and design-related around here, the title does say culture. And while this is hardly on the beautiful side of culture, just reading about it kept me wide awake through the night. Earlier this week, Kaing Guek Eav (aka Duch), a notorious member of the Khmer Rouge, Cambodia’s oppressive ruling party from 1975 to 1979, was sentenced by the UN to prison for crimes against humanity. The prison term for this man who oversaw Khmer Rouge leader Pol Pot’s secret torture prison S-21 aka Tuol Sleng, and the brutal deaths of up to 17,000 mostly innocent “prisoners,” is a shocking mere 19 more years, meaning he could potentially walk free one day. I consider this an outrage, and it’s part of my motivation to share these gripping photographs here, part of the extensive system of records that were maintained, which included confessions extracted from each one (which were needed in order to execute them), often obtained through prolonged torture and appallingly neglectful living conditions. Many of those targeted by the Khmer Rouge and their insane plan to reset society to “Year Zero,” forcing cities like Phnom Penh to empty into the countryside where they were forced into labor camps, or worse. It is claimed that between 800,000 and 2-million people, about 25% of the country’s entire population perished at the hangs of people like Pol Pot, Duch, and 5 more living Khmer Rouge leaders awaiting trial.

More information can be found here, and on Wikipedia and the news. How can we help serve true justice to those responsible and their victims?

One of the things I enjoy most about the design work I’ve been doing in the music industry over the past couple years is seeing people I’ve been fortunate enough to meet, work with, and even befriend, as they release their music to the delight of listeners. The fanfare and positive regard you can see at shows, in reviews, and most importantly, forming in your own mind as you listen to the songs, it’s an encouraging feeling. Each of today’s fresh new selections has had such an effect on me, hopefully you’ll find something you like and delve deeper.

Machinedrum – Carry The Weight – Many Faces

Machinedrum is hot off a tour that started in Europe and ended in the US, named after his latest release on Hudson Mohawke‘s Lucky Me imprint, Many Faces. As if the response he received at Sonar in Spain or in cities like Paris and Berlin wasn’t convincing enough, the slew of material I’ve heard from him that I sadly cannot share more of with you all (yet) has made a true believer of me. Considering the fact that he also just released the killer Love Pressure debut EP as one-half of Sepalcure, and also actively records as Tstewart to stand with the likes of Benoit and Bibio, it’s tough to dispute the impressive conclusion: that it is indeed possible for someone who cut their teeth on Merck to bounce back from relative irrelevance into not just one, but many of today’s very relevant labels and find himself among the minority ranks of electronic performers who can actually make a career of what they do. Now, about your TPS reports…

Shigeto – After She Smokes – What We Held On To (Free EP)

Shigeto played at Ghostly‘s A/V Showcase series in San Francisco and LA earlier this month, and between lives sets across the country as Shigeto and playing live drums for School of Seven Bells, along with an almost prophetic dedication to making dope beats on a daily basis, it’s almost hard to believe there would be any room for a free EP…but that’s not even what makes this EP so worth your download. What you have with the What We Held On To EP might be Shigeto’s most accessible release to date. And when I say “accessible,” I don’t mean “watered down,” I mean downright catchy. The ultra sleek clang of swords in this track amidst a dreamy, psychedelic-60′s-rock-esque vocal had me at hello. Check out the rest of these textured bits of hip-hop meats future-jazz, and keep an eye out for his full length LP, Full Circle later this year. Also, Shigeto now has a tee shirt, sweet!!

School of Seven Bells – Bye Bye Bye – Disconnect From Desire

School of Seven Bells released their latest full length recording this month, another one on Ghostly. The album is called Disconnect From Desire, and it might feature what I think is some of the coolest art direction I’ve seen all year. What struck me about their sound this time around is the evolution…perhaps everything evolves in life, but only that which evolves to survive continues to see the light of day. Surely, if we found SVIIB in the same place as they were when Alpinisms was released, there would be a lot of questions to be sure. That’s not so say the beautifully cryptic nature observed just below the pristine and pop-friendly surface is without questions of its own, like how can a post-Shoegaze band get away with a song entitled, “Bye Bye Bye,” that sports blast beats rarely heard outside of the metal scene, while still coupling pleasantly with the intoxicating vocals of the Deheza sisters? Best not to get raveled up in the mystery and just enjoy…actually, I take that back, go ahead and get raveled, it’s worth it this time.

Wolf + Lamb – Want Your Money – Love Someone

Wolf + Lamb was mentioned a couple posts back, referring to the production duo Gadi and Zev who run the eponymous label, just released the debut LP, Love Someone I was talking about earlier. There’s something truly astounding about the precision inherent in each of the releases W+L, Gadi especially, have put their name on. As a production duo and a record label, as well as a setting for the happenings at the illustrious Marcy Hotel, the activities of this scene and the corresponding scenes that ennervate the world’s latest-night deepest-hazed corner of House music, all come together like the unfolding plot of an intricate mystery novel. Everything seems to make sense once we hear it, “Ohhh,” we tell ourselves with a faint sense of Deja Vu, as if we could hear the clues in prior releases, like pieces of the puzzle falling into place.

It’s a mere couple weeks before I make the move to New York City, so please excuse the calmness around here in light of all the last-minute projects and obligations I have been getting handled before this transition finally commences. There has been a torrent of great two-step in the last few months, here’s what I’ve been loving recently.

Mount Kimbie – Carbonated – Crooks & Lovers

Mount Kimbie, if you haven’t heard already, is completely slaying imaginations and captivating listeners everywhere with a sound that transcends almost any genre label you try to apply to it. With their new release Crooks & Lovers on Hotflush, the UK production duo advances their sound further with a wildly catchy assortment of popping, percolating hi’s that complement without capitulating to deep, resonant, and at times even cavernous lo’s. This track might serve as the best summation of Mount Kimbie at this point in time (including remixes and live sets), but the album, which is another strong contender for release of the year in my book, encompasses ideas far to great to be conveyed through just one selection, so do yourself a favor and check this baby out!

Actress – Senorita – Splazsh

Today’s other very strong candidate for album of the year comes from Actress, the album is called Splazsh, and I’d be inclined to say the same genre-defying description applies to it, were it not for the fact that Darren himself has chosen a term for his sound, “R&B Concréte.” Mixing shards of R&B with an attention to engineering detail a la musique conréte, the terms UK garage and two step are hardly fitting for music that successfully conveys a sense of artistry that has become largely devoid in today’s sub-obsessed sphere of dubstep influence (I bring dubstep into this because I’ve seen Actress and Loefah share the marquee at Dub War, playing one after the other), too concerned with the worthy cause of blasting bass to imbue their songs with the feel like listeners are experiencing fine art.

Ditchdigger – douglassferns (demo)

Earlier in the summer, I had a chance meeting with a talented unsigned producer named Joe Prewitt, out there bullying genre boundaries under the name Ditchdigger.  We had a small afterparty at the crib after Plastic Fantastic/Fountain Green, playing DJ mini-set popcorn.  Among the material he gave us a listen to, which spanned cold mid-tempo dub techno to more organic house blends, it all had my attention much in the same way that Floating Points and Joy Orbison did when I first heard them. Since then we’ve kept in touch, and the more we find shared musical influences from Merck to Hotflush, the more I personally get excited for what kind of tunes I will hear next. Maybe there’s more of a future in diggin’ ditches than mother warned us.

Sepalcure – Feeling That I Know So Well – (free unreleased track on rcrd.lbl)

Prepare to hear the track that started it all for me with this Sepalcure I’ve been raving about all year. Travis and Praveen just decided to share one of their earliest productions on RCRD.LBL blog, some free love(step) that everyone who reads Blog.H34 should have in their library. There honestly isn’t much else to say that hasn’t already been said, so just enjoy this one!

Stuck in the mid-summer’s heatwave? Take a moment to think for a second about how much you missed this heat back in January, remember those days when you couldn’t fathom going to the corner store without full clothing, a jacket and scarf…those always help get me through those nights where you can’t fall asleep because it’s just too damn hot, maybe these fresh deep cuts can also help make it bearable, although I wouldn’t expect them to help cool things off, in fact probably just the opposite.

Lump – A Promise – Rain EP

I heard Lump on a new Wolf + Lamb podcast Gadi mixed up for What People Play’s podcast and found not only an excellent track, but a great song to have stuck in your head when you want to tune things out. For example, I was in a club where this horrendous, abbrasive electro-schlock was playing and between that and listening to girl-drama, the only thing going through my mind the entire time was this dope ass beat and that wacky old dude’s confident claim that everything he plays is gonna be funky. Wolf + Lamb (the production duo in this case) is releasing their debut LP Love Someone on July 16th.

Glimpse – If I Was Your Girl – Runner

Glimpse came out with Runner, a burner of an LP on Crosstown Rebels late in the spring, and it has this standout track. I hear what sounds unmistakably like Janet Jackson’s voice eventually, and between the dubby stabs and the boiler room temperature of the bassline and beat, there’s a sweaty track that resonates deep vibrations in both classic and forward-thinking styles of house.  This might be one of my favorite deep house tracks of the year so far.

Atnarko – Close Your Eyes (The Dirty Deep Mix) – (single)

Atnarko is almost always up to something worth listening to, as an Orlando-based DJ who seems to act as an interface between the stereotypical Florida-area (ie. Miami) dance scene and the international, especially UK deep house style. Well, in May he released Close Your Eyes, which has a great assortment of alternate mixes and a very hot Soul Minority remix. I like the reserved sheen of this Dirty Deep Mix, it definitely carries a bit of that Miami/Florida vibe.

Chris Wood & Meat – Chi-Ka-Go (Einzelkind Remix) – No Sad Beat EP

I should admit the first and last tracks in today’s post were discovered upon recommendations from my buddy Ryan, who as Lucid Transport has been making a transition into Philly’s DJ circles, joining lineups and mixing things up from his well-maintained collection of house and techno selections. After seeing Spectral’s femme fatale, Kate Simko, rock this track at DEMF during an early morning/late night ReSolute party, Ryan set out to discover the source. Luckily for all of us, Kate is awesome and responded to the email Ryan sent her, it’s by Chris Wood and Meat, remix by Einzelkind on the No Sad Beat EP.

Kate Simko at ReSolute Detroit 2010 (video)

I’m very excited to announce the release of three new tee shirt designs as part of the rollout of the new Moodgadget Store, powered by Merchline.  The first two designs– for Shigeto and The Young Friends are by me, while the third design was created by Weed‘s frontman Will Anderson (aka Gradfad) under some art direction by myself and label boss/series curator, Jakub Alexander.  This is the first time I’ve created tee shirts intended to function as fashion items more than merch or wearable ad collateral, we painstakingly considered an endless combination of fabrics and inks, pushing ourselves and each other to take the design even further.  While I’ve been doing tee design for years, I’d never done it at this level, where we consider our competition to be the $80 shirts hanging in Soho, not Brooklyn.  With more designs on the way– Tees, Physical Releases and yes, even Prints, The Moodgadget Store is one spot you’ll want to keep your eye on if you dig my design work.

Sorry for the slight downtime around here, there was a slight glitch after a server update, thanks to mediatemple for their responsive support as we are now back online and fully updated.  I’ve got a ton of hot deep cuts to share over the next day or two, plus some exciting announcements on the way, so stay tuned!

Tom Middleton – Teleporter – 10:10

Constant Mark Pritchard collaborator Tom Middleton of the UK has a new EP out on Toolroom Records.  This is deep house with as much emphasis on the deep bass grooves, as the chilled stabs and techno sound fx.  The stabs and snare hits are what draw me to this track, the EP itself is definitely worth a listen as it should be charting quite a bit during this phase of the summer heat.  Definitely a good starter track.

Pezzner – Chiuso Per Ferie – The Tracks Are Alive

One of my absolute favorite remixer/producers at the moment is Seattle’s Dave Pezzner, who for the past couple years has been wowing listeners with wildly original compositions that melt genre boundaries in much the same way that Jimpster‘s 2006 release Amour did when it came out, blurring the distinction between deep house, techno, IDM, and ambient.  Well, Freerange has come full-circle it seems with The Tracks Are Alive, one of label-head Jimpster’s most ambitious signings practically since day one.  The drop in this track is absolutely bonkers.

Gorge – Erotic Soul – Mood

Another Freerange-associated producer just released a full-length himself, the producer is Gorge and the release is called Mood, it’s out on his 8bit imprint.  Both the Gorge and Pezzner albums are solid in their entirety, but where Pezzner relies on a more experimentational approach, Gorge sticks to his guns with tracks that remind everyone what it was like to first hear those elusive deep cuts coming out of Chicago over a 56k modem, only this time it’s in proper fidelity and sounds incredible.

The Normalites – The Sun Rising (Shur-I-Kan Vocal) – (single)

Since we’re in a loungy sort of zone of deep house, I figured I’d post up this head-scratcher of a Shur-I-Kan remix.  I say head-scratcher because adherents to a single school or style of house music might catch themselves off-guard.  It’d be almost campy if it didn’t sound so cohesive, Enya-esque females and neo Depeche Mode eurotrash vocals are things I should balk at enjoying, and yet if they are backed by enough sub and pad under the right conditions, it sounds good to my ear.  Does it come off as dramatic and risky or mysteriously appeal to your ear?