DJs: Most Charted - Minimal / Tech - Most Charted In August 2012

Review: We can always rely on Ornaments to deliver the best in quality house music and 2012 was another important milestone for the label. Their last EP sees label favourite, Rhauder go head to head with on of the most charismatic voices in house and techno - Mr.Paul St Hilaire, famously known for his work with Rhythm & Sound and its sub-label, Burial Mix. The original is actually reminiscent of the Basic Channel tradition, with those long, sweltering chunks of percussion flowing so neatly along side St Hilaire's enigmatic voice. The dub version is even deeper and indulgent in its delay tradition - exactly what we want to see here! The Pop-a-dub mix is an absolute gem though, allowing those drums to release themselves from the torrent of reverb and tape echo and grind their way to the sound of those gorgeous dub vocals.

Review: There are few who manage to nail restrained but genuine funk quite like Mr G. With a minimum of fuss but careful attention to detail, Colin McBean (to his folks) can create a real sense of wonder out of a simple drum pattern, the odd wisely placed sample and a straightforward melody. This latest offering for Monique Musique is no different, as the title track neatly exemplifies with its bongo-enhanced disco roll and direct chord stabs. "Heavy Gal" is a rougher prospect, working a measured garage shuffle over a growling, unending bass line and coming up with gold once again.

Review: Ricky V's return to Perlon this year! That's correct, some four years on from his last appearance for the Frankfurt label, Villalobos returns with a two track 12" housed in those distinctive Perlon colours that precede the release of the Chilean's fifth studio LP later this summer. While Ricardo has been in experimental mood of late - see the Shangaan Electro remix or the Re: ECM album he completed with Max Loderbauer - both tracks here are very much in the canon of trademark Villalobos productions. Lead track "Any Ideas" plays around with the repetition of a vocal sample over stretched out textures that veer into mind bend territory whilst the pitter patter groove at times sounds like a ping pong game in action. On the flip "Emilio (2nd Minimoonstar)" is reminiscent of a ZX Spectrum having a meltdown in time to a minimal bump.

Review: Senor Woolford has joined Loco Dice, Bug and Troxler in the small but well respected band of producers to contribute to NRK's compilation series The Lab, which is thankfully rolling on despite Nik Harris' recent decision to close down operations at NRK HQ after 15 years in the game. This four track vinyl sampler gives you a well judged taste of the double CD which presents Woolford at his most wilfully eclectic. The A Side has two titans of US House in Chez Damier and Terrence Dixon, while the flip sees Skudge turn in a typically gripping remix of Iron Curtis and Edit Piaf's Achterbahn D'Amour next to "Berlin Sunrise (Die Dammerung)", Daniel Wang's stunning electronic disco turn for the Ghostly label.

Review: "Aus" marked one of the deeper moments from Nina Kraviz's self titled debut album, released earlier this year to general applause, and it makes a smart choice for single release as the restrained emotion of those rippling Rhodes touches and organs means the track is ripe for reinterpretation. Kudos to label and artist for the chosen remixers on this twelve inch; with The Rhythm Oddysey, DJ QU and Matthew (Radioslave) E all taking the King Aus featuring icy funker in different directions. You should know what to expect from a remix by Dean Meredith under The Rhythm Oddysey moniker but the Warehouse Tape edit is named for those that don't, with the spirit of Ron Hardy at play here on a stripped back, hissing groove that's embellished with typical acid squiggles and an excellent final twist into funk. Edwards turns in a typically rolling techy version graced with some subtle analogue abstractions while Strength Music type DJ QU provides the most mind-bending remix with a richly constructed production far removed from Kraviz's original.

Review: Fat Cat usher in the first of two Hauschka-gets-the-remix-treatment EPs that precede an autumn release of a full album's worth of remixes based around the German producer's acclaimed 2011 LP Salon des Amateurs. On the basis of the artists chosen here, Fat Cat are preparing to unleash a real gem of a remix project, with Ricardo Villalobos once again collaborating on a remix, as "A Cube" is transformed into a typically abstract minimalist composition that dissects the orchestral elements of Hauschka's production into mere shards that sit in the backdrop of a spritely little groove. Complementing this, Kompakt boss Michael Mayer comes through with an excellently paced remix of "Radar" which seemingly takes a glorious age to fully blossom but sounds so melodically enriching when it does.