Back catalogue: House

Review: After a couple of quiet years Ferro's VBX label returns with a bang, as the esteemed Dutch minimal producer links up with none other than Ricardo Villalobos for a run of 'Ferric' jams. Enlightened souls should have some idea of what to expect here, as Ferro's snappy grooves collide with Villalobos' meandering sound collages to create psychoactive termites geared towards twisting out the dancefloor good and proper. This is proper minimal, with the percussion chiselled into fine clicks and pops to leave more space for the trippy elements to weave their magic. The quality comes assured from this new pairing, hopefully paving the way for more collaborations in the future.

Review: Bushwacka deserves any plaudits that come his way. He was there at the birth of acid house and went on to foment his own take on tech house. He held a legendary residency at the End in London and of course dropped countless seminal tunes alongside Layo, not least their epic 'Love Story' mash-up. Now the acclaimed but still relevant UK veteran dives back into his roots to serve up the sounds that came before tech house with highlights that would have been heard at the time at parties like Heart & Soul, Release, The Drop, Vapour Space, and at venues like Heaven and The End. Skippy, dubbed garage and driving house all feature in a fine collection.

Review: Given that they started their ascent to EDM superstardom over a decade ago and have already released a string of genuine crossover anthems, this debut album from Camelphat is undeniably overdue. So, was it worth waiting for? If you like their brand of festival-friendly dance music hedonism, then you will genuinely love it. The assembled 21 tracks scattered across three action-packed slabs of wax draw influence from many interconnected styles - mostly electro-house, tech-house and techno, but also indie-dance, synth-pop, nu-disco and more bass-heavy flavours - and repackage them as distinctively Camelphat style productions, complete with contributions from numerous collaborators and guest vocalists (Noel Gallagher, Skream, Jake Bugg, Yannis Foals, Jem Cooke and Christoph all feature).

Review: Joseph Capriati has very quickly risen from underground techno player to top-tier titan. The Italian hails from Naples, a famous hotbed of minimalism that has spawned stars like Marco Carola. whose footsteps Capriati has followed in by securing his own Ibiza residency for his Metamorfosi party. The sort if sounds you can expect to hear on that label and at the events are well showcased here on his new mix of the legendary Global Underground series. From dark and driving techno to more emotional and melodic house, it's a colourful and widescreen ride that features a couple of his own fresh jams and many more from contemporary artists.

Review: Renowned producer, remixer, DJ and record label owner Carl Craig is one of the few artists who can truly claim to have shaped the sound of
modern electronic music. Making music since the tender age of 17, Craig has created everything from ambient soundscapes to jazz
during the past 20 years, but it's his work in dance music that is at his core. 'Sessions' is a long overdue album that brings together a personal
selection of Carl's incredible back catalogue, from his early work under the aliases Paperclip People and 69 to worldwide hits like 'Throw'
(recently covered live by LCD Soundsystem) and groundbreaking tracks like 'Bug in the Bassbin'. Alongside the classics, the two discs also showcase why Craig is still such a powerful force in music today with a diverse range of remixes for the likes of XPress 2, Theo Parrish and many others. For his rework for Junior Boys'. 'Like A Child' he was just nominated for a Grammy.
The selection also includes previously unreleased tracks, alternative versions of his own productions, as well as some exclusive unreleased
remixes. 'Sessions' reminds us of how exciting and unique Carl Craig's productions and remixes are and why he remains at the top of his game,
a retrospective of one of the world’s most influential and groundbreaking figures in electronic music.

Review: As a paid-up member of Seth Troxler's extended Visionquest family, it's perhaps no surprise that Detroit new-schooler Lee Curtiss's contribution to the Watergate club's mix series is brimming with warm, touchy-feely tech-house. From start to finish, Watergate 08 sounds like an audio advert for the Visionquest sound; that pleasingly melodic fusion of heavy low-end, off-kilter synth pop posturing and tactile, MDMA-friendly electronic grooves. It's the sort of effortlessly delicious sound that lends itself well to a mix album, and as a result Watergate 08 is a lovely listen. With superb contributions from Footprintz, Maceo Plex, No Regular Play, Kim-Ann Foxman and Curtiss himself, there's plenty to get excited about.

Review: 11 years on from DJ Koze's one and only commercial mix, 2004's All People Is My Friends for Kompakt, the Pampa boss lines the 50th DJ Kicks mix, following high profile contributions from Nina Kraviz and Actress. This vinyl edition offers the best of both worlds really, featuring some 17 highlights of Kozalla's selection in their original form spread across two slabs of vinyl whilst !K7 have also thrown in a CD copy of the mix so you can hear how it's all done Koze-style. As you'd expect Koze presents one of the more far-reaching selections in the series, with Madlib-produced Freddie Gibbs nestling up alongside William Shatner, Boards of Canada remixes, Broadcast whilst the likes of Marcel Fengler, Session Victim and Frank & Tony offer some deepness.

Review: Global Underground is one of the longest-running DJ mix series and it has always been one of the best. Plenty of big-names over the years have made their mark, often more than once, and now it is the turn of the famously long-playing New York titan Danny Tenaglia to show us what he's made of. He brings his signature grooves and a hint of Latin flavour to proceedings on this, a third and final installment of his trilogy for the series. It is mostly contemporary names serving up new school sounds but all delivered with Danny's cultured and old school DJ mentality.

Review: Deeper States Volume 2 is another installment of fresh sounds from producers who have come through a competition that set them to making proper deep hose with a specified sample library. Across four sides of wax, there are some mighty fine cuts here such as the deep garage inflections of Enrico Dragoni, some Motor City vibes from Scott Andrews, the deepest of dub techno workouts from Montreal courtesy of Dealin', soul-drenched late-night cruisers from Khalid Ali on 'Elevate' and some nice bubbly vocal vibes from Dublin don Oscide with his 'Free Your Mind.' This is another hugely effective and stylish EP from the Interweaved community.

Review: Norm Talley has put together a second volume of his Unity series on his own label Upstairs Asylum. It features his nearest and dearest from Chicago and Detroit, all of whom of course serve up perfectly smoky and stripped back deep house and techno grooves to make you move. Delano Smith's characteristic loops lock you in from the off on 'Big City Nights,' Norm himself pairs dub techno chords with suggestive techno stabs that keep you on edge and Brian Kage's 'Poly-Phonic Phonk' is heady, dreamy, richly melodic house bets listened to in a cosy back room at 4 am.

Review: While there's no over-arching concept behind the series, it's always safe to assume that any new Selects compilation from Global Underground will be packed to the rafters with brand-new house and techno that tends towards the melodic, atmospheric, glassy-eyed and tactile. Volume eight certainly ticks those boxes, with 12 highlights from the (more expansive) mixed version stretched across two slabs of purple vinyl. Our picks of a predictably strong bunch include a delightful deep tech-house tweak of Fulltone & Parallel's 'How Can I Resist' by Patrice Baumel, the Space Invaders-goes-trance throb of 1979's 'Vulcano', the bleeping brilliance of Captain Mustache's retro-futurist rework of O.N.O's 'Gran Music' and the ambient soul beauty of Yotto's 'Silhouette'.

Review: UNTZ Anthems is a wild ride through some of dance music's biggest dancefloor moments. There is absolutely no restriction in terms of genres, eras or artists which makes each one a real selection box of sound. This third volume for example takes in the timeless house classic 'Move Your Body' as reworked by Solar, but also the pop dance of Calvin Harris & Ellie Goulding's 'Miracle' and jump up jungle of Sub Focus & Dimension's 'Desire.' CamelPhat & Elderbrook's GRAMMY-nominated 'Cola' brings a touch of house depth while Riva Starr's Paradise Garage club mix of 'Hey Hey' reworks the house anthem into something more strobe-lit and energetic.

Review: Lithuania's Greyscale is a prolific and high-quality label that draws another fine year to a close with a reflection on their Mood Series which has very much become part of their defining legacy. This success is thanks to "our artists, teams, pressing plants, families, friends, and most importantly, you-the listeners." they say, so well done. And here comes another fine entry to round out the year with Compiled 4 celebrating releases #61-#80 on a double CD. Once again it has been assembled by label founder grad_u, it features a wealth of grainy, dubby, warming atmospheres, rolling rhythms and wispy synths that soothe mind, body and soul.

Review: Accomplished Turkish label ISOLATE is marking five years in existence and over 30 odd releases with a new and bumper collection of sounds from all of its main players in remix mode. Isolate: Five Years unfolds over six, yes six, sides of wax and traverses all manner of fresh techno sound worlds. There are drawn-out synth and deep techno adventures from Aera, floating and dubby dream-house offerings from DJ Counselling, pulsating future tech from Hardt Anoine and roaming melodic tech house kickers from Gunce Aci amongst many more highlights.

Review: This is the final instalment of Nous Klaer Audio's beloved 3x12" compilation series and it's another classy outing that serves up a diverse range of sounds from deep, immersive rhythms to driving techno, rave-infused house and some in-between surprises. Curated by label-head Oberman, it features contributions from both established artists and fresh talent, including Megan Leber with the serene 'Tides', a textured remix from Pye Corner Audio, the lushness of Eversines's 'Rhapsodia' and more besides. It adds up a real trove of top tackle.

Review: Continuing the research project started last year, Sound Metaphors, Transmigration, and historian Ray Castle present an in-depth analysis of the dancefloor scene in Goa during the 80s and early 90s, before trance became a mainstream genre. This tropical underground haven thrived on unique aesthetics, with dedicated collectors and DJs curating the finest "special goa music" from the era's emerging electronic tracks. This compilation features impactful new beat, proto-techno, early progressive, trance, industrial, EBM and house music tracks, accompanied by event photographs in a double LP gatefold with a poster and liner notes by Ray Castle. Re-mastered in Berlin, it's an essential addition to any record collection.

Review: Laurant Webb, Dave Coker, Justin Bailey, and Dave Pine were the key figures behind Strange Weather Studios, which was a creative hub in Southeast London that helped shape the very early sound of tech house in the capital. Collaborating with friends and partners on several projects, they produced a number of influential records that defined the genre including under aliases such as Housey Doingz, 7th Voyage, and Space Bunny. This release on Sushitech, which always does a fine job of offering up the best tech house past and present, pays tribute to the studio and its collaborators with representative tracks carefully selected by Laurant Webb and label head Yossi Amoyal. Restored and remastered from rare DATs and pressed up to no fewer than six sides of vinyl, it's a great look at a significant moment in the evolution of tech house.

Review: Working with various collaborators, Laurant Webb, Dave Coker, Justin Bailey, and Dave Pine produced influential records under aliases like Housey Doingz, 7th Voyage, and Space Bunny at the influential Strange Weather Studios. Those records very much helped to define the early days of the tech house genre. This Sushitech release comes on clear vinyl and honours their legacy, with tracks handpicked by Webb and label founder Yossi Amoyal. They have all been remastered from rare DATs and across three slabs of wax make for an essential deep dive into an important phase in the earliest days of tech house.