Freer Sounds 2024 #2

The Freer Sounds show is back with a mixture of new gems and classics.

What is Deep? Searching for spirituality in House music

We trace the roots of profound deepness. We start with today's prime movers musclecars and look back at some of the pioneers of a spiritual approach. musclecars gave me hope. They gave me hope that a new generation wants to embrace the deep.

How Yam Who and Blackbeard’s Pirate Soul sparked a frenzy of Remixes, Reworks and DJ Edits in the mid 2000s

Twenty years ago, two mysterious acts revolutionised the DJ edit or remix. They called them 'reworks' and named them 'spiritual' or 'summer madness'. This is the story of Yam Who, Backbeard and the short-lived Pirate Soul era.

Kerri Chandler says thank you with a Free Download

New York producer Kerri Chandler is rightly considered a living legend in the world of House music

Freer Sounds Show 2024 #1

The Freer Sounds show is back after a short break. We still aim to bring you the best new music and classics from a deeper perspective.

Ron Morelli – Rhythm Master – L.I.E.S. Records

Ron Morelli on his own L.I.E.S. Records. You know the drill. Rough around the edges House bangers with authenticity and guts.

Can AI feel the groove? My Experiment Creating House Music with AI Tools

AI has the possibility to fundamentally change our lives. We must try to understand what it is capable of to be able to harness its power. Music technology is an area ripe for an AI revolution - if it isn’t already happening already.

Solu Music – I Feel (Chris Brann Remix) – Solu Music

NY's Solu Music unleash the sumptuous Chris Brann remix of I Feel. This track is a beauty that they created with Atlanta based songstress Kai Martin.

Amp Fiddler Tribute

In the heart of Detroit's vibrant music scene, Joseph 'Amp' Fiddler stood as a connecting thread that weaves through genres and generations. As a multifaceted artist - musician, instrumentalist, and producer - Amp Fiddler has left an enduring legacy.

2023 Favourites Old Vinyl

As new records get more expensive each year, second hand records become more of an attractive option.

Antonio Ocasio – After The Rain – Tribal Winds

In 2009, Antonio Ocasio released the absolutely beautiful After The Rain.

Le Knight Club – Troobadoor / Mirage – Crydamoure

I heard many of the Crydamoure records back in the 1990s and early 2000s. However, this was not one of them.

Petre Inspirescu – Sakadat / Colesterol – Vinyl Club

I feel I'm playing constant catch-up when it comes to the Techier and Minimal end of things. At the same time, there's not a huge amount I feel the need to own on vinyl.

S.W.A.T. – Rights of Passage – Soulfood

This record was an unexpected summer 2023 find. Soulfood was a short-lived label from San Francisco's Rasoul around the turn of the century.

Spice Girls – Spice Up Your Life (Murk Dub) Virgin

The totally unexpected one. It was cheap and I was already buying a pile of second hand records, so it ended up on the pile.

KB – Feelin U – Yoruba Records

I was a big fan of KB's El Musica. I played it off a CD Osunlade had sent me for months before it was officially released in 2005.

Stretch – Why Did You Do It – Beat Box

A total curveball. A pristine copy of a 50 cent record from the bargain bin of a local record shop.

David Alvarado – Devotional – Peacefrog Records

I'm always on the lookout for records by David Alvarado. Ever since hearing Klugh on Ovum back in 1999, I've been drawn to Alvarado's spaced out yet driving take on House and Techno.

Faze Action – Moving Cities – F-111 Records

One of those 'had I heard it before' type records.

M. Reich & J. Foufas – Alchemy – Svek

I bought this whilst browsing a collection online. I hadn't heard it before, but I was immediately attracted by the mention of an Erot remix.

Daniel Paul – Outta Space – Mermaid

I meant to buy this in 2001. I had it on a Sonar Kollektiv CD, so I played that when DJing.

The Aloof – One Night Stand – EastWest

It is all about the 13 minute Ashley Beedle remix.

Barac – Moment of Clarity – Moment Records

I originally heard this on Youtube. The algorithm actually found me something useful for a change.

2023 Favourite Singles

In my TMO x Piankov review, I mentioned that House music is in its fourth decade.

2023 Favourite Albums

We expected the album to keel over and die as a format once digital took centre stage. But it didn't. Or it hasn't yet.

2023 Favourite Reissues

Reissues threaten to swallow up the music market today. It has been like this for a while, but seems to have intensified in the last few years.

2023 Favourite 7″ Records

I did not buy many 7's during 2023. This was partly due to not finding a great deal of interesting things on 7" in my chosen genres and partly due to cost.

TMO x Piankov – L.I.E.S. Records

TMO x Piankov know best. Leonid Lipelis and Eugene Piankov are masters of creating life affirming melodies and reliable rhythms. They have somehow created an EP of dancefloor jams that are so futuristically retro, they make statements about the past, present and future of House music.

Larry Heard -Vault Session 2 – Alleviated Records

Andromeda One is the track for me here! With its seagull noises (or are they whales?), racy key lines and in-step percussion, it is classic Larry.

Adiel – Il Significato Delle Parole EP – Danza Tribale

Today, music is a full on sensory experience. The blur between visual and aural has never been harder to pertain.

Ricado Villalobos – Alcachofa – Perlon

I'm still wondering how I missed Alcachofa in 2003. I guess I just thought the whole Minimal thing was in line with the micro House and Kompakt/German Click school of House and Techno and didn't pay close attention.

David August – Epikur EP – Innervisions

Epikur came out in 2014, between David August's records with Solomun's Dynamic and Ninja Tune spin-off Counter.

Loefah & Coki – Disco Rekah/All of a Sudden – Deep Medi Musik

I always watched Dubstep very much from the outside.

Antonio Ocasio – Sacred Tones – Tribal Winds

Deep House pioneer Antonio Ocasio celebrates 50 vinyl releases on Tribal Winds with this 10" double header.

Christian Mirande – Beautiful One Day, Perfect The Next – Regional Bears

Beautiful One Day, Perfect The Next is a bit of a bold statement, but Christian Mirande has made the album to match it.

Calm – Quiet Under The Moon Sampler – Mukatsuku Records

Calm's relationship with Mukatsuku goes back more than two decades, when Nik 'Mukatsuku' Weston A&R'd Calm's music for Exceptional and promoed Calm's Japanese releases via his Mukatsuku PR company.

Shazz – Innerside – One World Records

Innerside is a classy slice of soul informed late 1990s House. It is the work of Didier Delesalle aka Shazz.

Alberta Balsam – 15 Billion Elektrovolt – Dub Recordings

15 Billion Elektrovolt is a magical mini album of IDM, Acid and Electro adjacent grooves from Rotterdam's Alberta Balsam.

Larry Heard – Another Night – Alleviated

Larry Heard re-edited by Moodymann! This is a bit of a hidden gem.

Antonio Ocasio, Coflo and Cee ElAssaad – SOuLCiETY Music Series Vol​.​1 – Tribal Winds

Antonio Ocasio has long been a key name when it comes to Afro and Latin influenced House music. At the same time, Ocasio has his finger on the pulse of musical development.

Drifting – Dream Autopsy – Förlag För Fri Musik

Just when you thought it was safe to slide back into the gutter and stop paying attention, Gothenburg's finest private press label show you the error of your ways.

Various – Beatscope Volume One – Beatscope Music

Beatscope Music is a new label from Manuel Perez and Bonnie Drasko. The label's spiritual home is Le Rachdingue, the nightclub in northern Catalonia designed by Miette and once frequented by Dali and the Mediterranean jetset.

Dele Sosimi – Turbulent Times ( The Joaquin Joe Claussell Remixes) – Sacred Rhythm Music

Dele Sosimi, an Afrobeat scholar, expresses his activism through his art. His song, Turbulent Times, still resonates today even though it was made in 2002. Joaquin 'Joe' Claussell, another artist that takes a stand with his work.

Johannes Björk – Johannes Björk – Infinite Expanse

Johannes Björk started making music again during the pandemic, after a gap of around 15 years. He made the Ljus & Grus 7" as a side project to his PhD thesis, which explains the debt to literature and occasional academic ambience.

Freer Sounds Show November 2023

The November 2023 edition of the Freer Sounds show features a wide variety of music styles within an hour of programming, spanning from Acid Breaks to Future Dub. Notable is Richie Havens's cover of Fleetwood Mac and Ricardo Villalobos' remix of A Mountain of One. The show is available for listening on Mixcloud.

Yasushi Ide – A Place In The Sun (Kaoru Inoue Remix) – Love Injection Records

We have our Place In The Sun courtesy of celebrated Japanese producer Yasushi Ide, ace remixer Kaoru Inoue and the digging skills of NYC's Love Injection.

A Mountain of One – Ricardo Villalobos reimagines Stars Planets Dust Me – Vicious Charm Recordings

If you were a fan of the vocal end of Balearica in the mid to late 2000s, you would probably have come across A Mountain of One.

Gabriels – Angels & Queens (Paul Woolford’s Special Request Remix) – Parlophone/Atlas Artists

Paul Woolford channels 1990s' era Def Mix and other House heroes on this pianotastic remix of Gabriels.

Elegia – With The Wind – Brique Rouge

The emotion! This is what makes Elegia's music special.

Kerri Chandler & Dennis Quin ft. Troy Denari – You Are In My System – Kaoz Theory

"You Are In My System," a popular dancefloor anthem initially released by David Frank & Mic Murphy in the 1980s, has seen multiple notable remakes, including Kerri Chandler's 1998 and 2019 versions, and Dennis Quin’s remixes. Chandler and Quin collaborated on a 2023 pressing of the song featuring Troy Denari. Its enduring appeal is demonstrated by its continued popularity on the dancefloor even after 25 years.