Review: It almost feels like Amsterdam's Rush Hour has been around as long as house music itself. The Dutch powerhouse does it all from new and fresh sounds to classic reissues. For this one, the assured Await 3 brings the party with a selection of hazy and dusty MPC jams with live accompaniment from Jos De Haas of New Cool Collective on percussion and Stefan Schmid from Zuco 103 on keys. The result is a timeless mix of warm-hearted jams, house cuts, broken beats and hazy melodies that are as comfy and frayed around the edges as your favourite jeans.
Review: Rush Hour did us plenty of favours this year but by far our most cherished was the reissue of James Mason's timeless, proto-house excursions on the infamous "Nightgruv" EP. There's really not much to be said about these peerless productions, the original mix is a stunning voyage through glimmering synths backed by a chugging beat groove, but the unreleased longer edit is the one - voyaging through those gorgeous drums and piano keys like there's no tomorrow! "I Want Your Love" is another masterpiece - slo-mo hip-hop beats mixed in with those killer funk bass lines and the infamous vocals taking you to another dimension.
Review: Manabu Nagayama's 'Light & Shadow' was released back in 2015 but never really got picked up despite being something of a gem now we listen back. Rush Hour co-founder Antal Heitlager knew it had more potential than it had shown so asked Masalo to remix it. Over the course of the last few years he has done that on and off and now finally we get to hear what he came up with. He elevates the track to new levels with subtle tweaks of the arrangement. It has now become a popular hit on the underground circuit with its heart-melting keys and deep, rolling drums.
Review: Rush Hour has been one of Europe's independent musical powerhouses for decades now. Now only does it have Amsterdam's best record shop, but it throws the best parties and puts put the fresh new records from several different genres. next to that of course they also know how to dig deep and unearth vital reissues, which is what they do here with a triple headed Japanese house affair. Katsuya Sano keeps it OG Chicago with his 'I Need Luv', then Junichi Soma offers the analogue depths of 'Ubnormal Life' and Shuji Wada shuts down with more brilliantly atmospheric sounds on 'Endless Load.'
Review: Having given the Dream 2 Science album the wider audience it richly deserved earlier this year, Rush Hour dig out another NYC garage classic from the archives of Ben Cenac for a much deserved reissue. Unlike that album, this Sha-Lor record Cenac recorded in collaboration with vocalists Sharmelle and Lorrie back in 1988 gained wider success, becoming a Summer Of Love staple. It's not hard to see why "I'm In Love" proved so enduring on the A Side Caught Up mix either, with the duo's vocals still retaining a power to move some 24 years on, while Cenac's stripped back bass heavy production is NYC garage at its finest. This being Rush Hour, there's also the bonus of a previously unreleased instrumental version occupying the flip.
Review: Cult Japanese video game soundtrack designer and happy house hero Soichi Terada's last album Asakusa Light on Rush Hour gets picked apart from some top remixes here. First to go is a former hip-hop beatsmith turned deep house don Byron The Aquarius. He smooths out the grooves of 'Bamboo Fighter' and layers in dusty chords and diffuse melodies that are heartwarming and hypnotic. 'Takusambient' then gets a fine treatment from Alex Attias who brings bubbly chords and bass to a lively deep house cut that is full of subtle party vibes.
Review: It's been some six years since Hun Choi made his debut on William Burnett's WT Records imprint. In that time, he's proved incredibly hard to pin down. This debut album for Rush Hour seems designed to continue that trend, offering a series of warm, melodious and curiously Balearic cuts that defy easy categorization. Sure, there are dancefloor-focused moments - see the cacophonous, Detroit-influenced hustle of "Error of the Average", the deep acid madness of "Silent Sensations" and the classic deep house bounce of "Desire" - but also a range of downtempo and ambient jams that arguably impress more. Of these, it's "The World" - a humid exercise in tropical drums, twittering flutes and looped vocal samples - and the sublime, string-laden "Bruises" that really stand out.
Review: Gerd Jansen's first collection of autobahn-inspired "ambient-not-ambient" cuts, released back in 2012, was something of an overlooked triumph. If anything, this second volume in the series - once again packed with exclusive, never-before-heard material - is even better. There are glistening, far-sighted excursions from Leon Vynehall, Shan and Orson Wells, a brilliant chunk of shuffling dancefloor hypnotism from Joy Orbison, and some vintage, low-slung ambient fare from Dutch veteran Orlando Voorn. Meanwhile, Disco Nihilist's "Melancholy" is formidable emotive - unsurprising, given the Detroit and deep synth-pop influences - while Lauer's "Autofahrn" is a thrillingly authentic Kraftwerk tribute.
Review: For deep house diggers, Soichi Terada has long been a source of inspiration. While he's still active, it's the early '90s material he released on the Far East Recordings label - an imprint he founded soon after his graduation in 1990 - that most excites. Following the 2014 re-release of his sublime hook-up with Nami Shimada, "Sunshower", Rush Hour has decided to put together this excellent retrospective. Compiled by self-confessed fan Hunee, Sounds From The Far East contains a mixture of hard-to-find Terada originals, collaborations, and tracks by fellow Far East Recordings artist Shinichiro Yokota, all in the label's trademark melody-rich, evocative deep house style.
Review: Dutchman Tom Trago has somehow been away from what was once his home label for a full decade now. He makes a welcome return like a long-lost son on new album Deco, a superbly accomplished record that takes its name from a sauna he frequented when he needed to decompress. Eventually, he put his musical career on hold and went to speed time with his young family and so this album was recorded after a long time away from club dance floors. It is delightfully whimsical with airy melodies, curious chords and majestic synth craft all drifting over barely-there rhythms. It's an album that provided musical therapy for Trago, and now us.
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