Michele Manzo's "Niños Del Mar" on DIRT TECH RECK is a vibrant fusion of Latin rhythms, soulful grooves, and deep house beats. The LP effortlessly blends organic instrumentation with electronic production, creating a rich sonic tapestry. Each track radiates warmth and energy, transporting listeners to sun-soaked, coastal landscapes More

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Following on from a string of acclaimed EPs on Planet E and his own label, DIRT TECH RECK boss Waajeed presents his first solo studio album, From The Dirt, due November 9th. This LP will feature 3 pieces of vinyl, manufactured and pressed in his hometown Detroit.

In order to understand Waajeed’s artistic profile, it helps to look at the musical history which informs it. As a child of Detroit who grew up just as encapsulated by hip-hop and soul as he was techno and house, he is driven by a commitment to finding the sweet spot between these paradigms. In a city full of dualities, his productions are underpinned by an inherent awareness of both sides of the coin.

From co-founding seminal hip-hop act Slum Village alongside the late J Dilla and running two of his own labels - Bling47 and DIRT TECH RECK - to producing leftfield soul as the frontman of Platinum Pied Pipers, and releasing collaborative records with Theo Parrish and Mad Mike Banks, his career as an artist has been varied to say the least. This manifests itself gloriously on From The Dirt, in which funk, soul, house, and techno play equal parts across ten dancefloor constructions. Gritty basslines are offset with glistening melodies and heartfelt lyrics, whilst shuffling percussion drives steadily forward. Vocals play an important role throughout, ‘I Ain’t Safe ft. Ideeyah’, ‘Things About You ft. Asante & Zo!’, ‘Too Afraid ft. Lulu’ and the meditative power of first single ‘Strength ft. Ideeyah’. Drum patterns vary between angular, funky and hypnotic soulful house - all with carefully mapped out cycles brandishing an inimitable rhythmic flair with big basslines like his current single, "Power In Numbers".

‘Growing up in the D, I spent Monday thru Thursday in the studio with Slum Village. Friday and Saturday nights we partied all night to Techno and early Sunday morning I went to church with my pastor. This is what I sound like. This is the sound of Detroit. This is From the Dirt.’ More

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Waajeed is proud to present ‘Strength’, a cathartic EP on his own imprint, DIRT TECH RECK. For this four-track package he’s enrolled three Detroit natives to collaborate; Ideeyah provides soulful vocals whilst Jon Dixon and Jay Daniel offer two diverse remixes. A Detroit dream team, if you will.

The title track is a radiant, melodic groover that looks to the sky for inspiration. Ideeyah’s lyrics battle with self-doubt, searching for solace in the harmonies around them, yet her vocals exude pure power. For his own ‘String Mix’, Waajeed elevates the delicate sentiment of the original to a sun-drenched dose of uplifting house. More

This is a journey led by Jeedo's Electric Street Orchestra to his native land, Detroit City. The Natives: It was created in direct defense to the assault on Detroit City. The uprooting of it's original citizens is fastly becoming the norm, as the population has plunged by 25 percent over the last decade. The Natives is meant to celebrate all the pioneers,revolutionaries, Moms and Pops that somehow get last in the media's coverage of newly imported ''do gooders''. We celebrate those who have continuously fought to defend the honor and dignity of this great city. Serpents: According the Bible's Book of Genesis, the serpent is a symbol of evil who appears in the Garden of Eden to tempt Eve. The serpent is portrayed as a deceptive creature or trickster with ill intent. We've all encountered numerous snakes in life, however this metaphor can also be applied to the cities ongoing issue of land-grabbing by numerous corporations with empty promises to build farms. Reco nstruct: This is the quiet after the storm, cleansing the palette for rebirth. A new beginning, one with hope and great promise. It was used as a sonic bed for the theatrical trailer of the award winning documentary ''Detropia''. Once again Waajeed AKA Jeedo has assembled a cast of sonic masters under one of his many monikers, Electric Street Orchestra. Including UR's Mad Mike, DJ Skurge, Ray 7 and newcomers Tiny Hearts.

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Lehman’s club resident David Löhlein’s warm-blooded techno is slinking, slithering and seducing its way through BNR, with the upcoming Hotel Pool EP release.


TRACK LISTING

A1. Hotel Pool
A2. La Piscina
B1. Cuando Vengas
B2. I Just Want


INFO

When picturing the German techno scene, one likely imagines the concrete monoliths of its capital city Berlin rather than the vineyards and valleys of the enchanting city of Stuttgart in the southwest. But small cities lack the oversaturation and noise of the metropolis, allowing them to develop their own inspired and distinctive subcultural visions. Stuttgart’s David Löhlein exemplifies this potential, manifesting a singular style of sight and sound through his Vision Ektase project and residency at Lehmann Club. Now, Löhlein’s warm-blooded techno is slinking, slithering and seducing its way through BNR, with the upcoming Hotel Pool EP release.

There’s no hesitation before plunging into the EP’s titular track, with its rushing fingered basslines and rolling polyrhythms. Löhlein cites solo travels in Columbia as the source of his Latin influences, and one hears them throughout “Hotel Pool” in vocal and percussive samples. Elements more commonly found in Latin and tribal house feel uncommonly fresh once Löhlein recontextualizes them within a 144 bpm techno foundation. The words “groovy” and “sexy” are usually reserved for the stuff of Buddha Bar compilations, but “Hotel Pool” is exhilarating because it serves both of the former and none of the latter.

A stream of hedonism flows beneath all of the four-tracker, but if the opener is erotic, A2 “La Piscina” is psychedelic. The bass flutters like a mescaline come-up, as infinite loops of chattering voices and deep bamboo pipe notes mesmerize. Again, Löhlein takes certain genre tropes - in this case from psytrance - and transposes them through his own stylistic signature with thrilling results. Ask Löhlein if he likes psytrance and the answer might be “Yes, when it’s techno.”

Leading the flip, “Cuando Vengas” heats up around a dark and sticky loop of ambiguous, organic origin. Here Löhlein’s masterful sample and drum programming is clearly on display, with vocal chops and subtle rhythmic variations leading the dancefloor to shivering bliss. The EP closes with “I Just Want,” a sparse, cold, and bitcrushed stalker of a track that seems to answer Baudrillard’s famed question “What are you doing after the orgy?” That the Hotel Pool EP’s wild romp ends in the Berlin oeuvre perhaps proves the city’s primacy in the German techno scene, but after a few listens one begins to wonder what rare pleasures they’ve been missing in David Löhlein’s Stuttgart. More

Shanti Celeste & Hodge team up again for Peach Discs... More