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One-sided 12" nerdery with Carl Craig's rare remix(1) of Can's "Future Days." This originally appeared on the quickly forgotten 1997 Can remix album (featuring Sonic Youth, UNKLE, Francois K, Brian Eno, A Guy Called Gerald amongst others!). Craig's uptempo reworking is...
expand review unclassifiable as usual: it' hypnotic, beautiful, gutsy, soulful, and so future. Recommended. -the mgmnt
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Recorded live in Paris in September of 2006, Carl Craig brought his rare leftfield jazz sounds to the stage with the help from popular Om Records saxophonist Wendell Harrison, and keys provided by Kelvin Sholar (old friend of C2's) and "Mad" Mike...
expand review Banks of Underground Resistance fame. Without even listening, you can put together all this information and pretty much formulate the same answer I'm about to give you - this record is amazing, and it really makes me wish I could travel more. Ignore the fact that Carl looks bored as fuck on the cover art sitting at the table - this record spanks! A-side warmup "Twilight(1)" sets the general mood - swirling atmospherics, wicked solos, and that always noticeable attention to detail C2 brings to all his production. But where the real action is is the B-side's "At Les(2)". Wooooah daddy! Now THAT is some serious Detroit heat! I can't even imagine how bonkers the crowd was going during this - what a damn treat those Parisians got! Bastards! Really wish I had a recording of the whole live set... maybe Carl has a trick up his sleeve for a future Planet-E CD release? One can only hope... but for now, I'm going to eat my freedom fries and enjoy this fine piece of musical bliss. Easy recommendation on this one. -minimal man
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K7 is one of the most important names in DJ mixes and Carl Craig is a giant in the Detroit techno and house world. Get both together and, as you'd expect, the chemistry is on fire and the result epic. This 3LP...
expand review release takes a handful of the most wanted tracks from his K7 Sessions mix and gives you full, unmixed versions for the dancefloor. Check the diverse selections. From minimal, jazzy, to big room tracks, Craig is the man and he gives you all that. Everything is remixed, produced or both by Craig himself and as a bonus he throws in some unreleased tracks. Do yourself a favor and sample the smooth yet heavy sounds of Directions' "Busted Trees - Remix(1)," the hypnotic funkiness on Paperclip People's(Carl Craig) "Throw - Unreleased Version(2)," the sophisticated vocals on Beanfield's "Tides - SessionsRemix(3)," and the futuristic jazz sounds of Innerzone Orchestras'(Carl Craig) - "Bug In The Bass Bin - Sessions Remix(4)." Also, the hot Junior Boys' "Like A Child - Remix" and the pumpin' Delia Gonzales & Gavin Russom's "Relevee - Remix" which we had for a quick minute at Lab but now are gone. So if you missed 'em here's a perfect chance to get crispy vinyl versions. To collectors of dance music like myself, this is so necessary. Recommended. -C'mish
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Back in print! Two killer edits from 2003 with the Detroit godfather taking his loving hand to the Congos' classic "Congo Man." The A side(1) is a spacious dub with minimal vocals, with the B side(2) leaving way more vocals intact for...
expand review all the Cedric Myton headz. Plays at 45. Recommended. -Chris Lemon-Red
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New comp EP from Mahogani Music featuring a tasty mix of housey lounge cuts for the soulful listener. On the long play side, a re-edit of Detroit garage rock mavens The Dirtbombs swooping Curtis Mayfield's Kung Fu(1), transforming the 70's funk jam...
expand review into a spacey dub version â€" ripe enough for the sophisticated, but funky enough for the young playas as well. On the flip, the Voltaire Brothers feature some warm, whomping bassline funk on "Which One(2)" with the classic soul vocals by Mick Collins, while Kenny Dixon Jr.'s Pitch Black City turns in one hell of a soulful house burner with "Runaway(3)." It starts off as breathily-spoken neo-soul poetry, but the heat starts when the beat drops. Not as funky as his usual Moodyman stuff, but his signature house sound still shines through. It's kinda like a Detroit legends hoe-down, 'cause I believe that's Amp Fiddler on the keys... -Cmish
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Green Velvet's classic from 1995 gets a major reissue that includes Carl Craig's seminal remix. "Flash" is one of Green Velvet's most popular tracks, having been remixed over the years by the likes of DJ Sneak, Boo Williams, Paul Johnson, Roach Motel,...
expand review Jellybean Benitez, Danny Tenaglia, Timo Mass and more. Here however, we are blessed with the best one - Carl Craig"s "Paperclip People(1)" mix. This originally came out in 1995 and is about as shuffly and bass heavy as they come. Reminds me of Craig's classic "Throw" though a lot harder. Truly classic and totally slamming. Green Velvet's original mix(2) is also included here, with hard Chicago stomping beats and Green Velvet's wonderful ode to our favorite: nitrous oxide. Last up is "Explorer(3)," a hard techno track with serious bass and sound effects. Green Velvet"s vocals on this one are about as evil as they have ever been. Beware. -Alison Tara
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A seriously unique record here to turn heads with, featuring two special remixes by Carl Craig. The original mix of "Check It, Spread It(1)" is a dark, sparse, tribal affair, featuring Japanese rap by Kazuyuki Shimizu (Ill-Bostinno). Carl Craig's "C2 Beat Mix(2)"...
expand review is huge, and has been getting play by all the big techno heads, like Kenny Larkin. Carl Craig delivers a minimal and hypnotic track, running Shimizu's vocals through spacey dubbed out effects, and adding some serious analogue synth work in the mix. Last up, Craig's main mix(3) adds a mean kick and lots more percussion, creating a sinister monster for the dancefloors. -Alison Tara
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Techno demigod Kenny Larkin is back after a short hiatus with fresh material on Planet E. Unlike legends that tend to get more adult contemporary as they age, Larkin still wields the edge on tracks like "You Are..." Honestly, the spoken word...
expand review is more than strange here (sounds like some b-movie, sci-fi, call to arms dialogue), but on a loud system it's really all about the clickity-clackin beat on the original mix(1). The b-side features a Carl Craig version(2) of "Bassmode." Craig really stretches out the original which results in one of his patented cerebral trips. Whereas most producers would just continually repeat the same movements, Craig really twist things around, continually challenging your audio perception (listen how it gains steam in the last third). By the end of it, you'll be muttering "genius." Also includes untitled version(3) of "You Are." -the mgmnt
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There's a large contingency of Detroit house DJ's that will, at the drop of a hat, blow your fucking mind. They'll mix so many different styles of music together absolutely flawlessly, and they put out some productions once and a while that...
expand review are warped yet immaculate...and Marcellus Pittman is one of those characters. One of the members of the illustrious 3 Chairs, as well as Theo Parrish's monstrous Rotating Assembly (check the lineup on discogs - its like 20 people deep), Marcellus is a master of the craft. On a new label that's rumored to be run by himself, we get two funky, dark, Detroit house cuts to get your mind going. "Chicago Nights(1)" is the king of the two, with its simplistic structure and funky ass drum machine workings. But don't let it fool you! Towards the end, the bassline dips in and you get some seriously heady stuff. The flip is one that most people are going to ignore purely for its obscurity, the intriguing-yet-twisted "There's Somebody Out There(2)." Both of these are for the fans of Omar-S, 3 Chairs and Theo Parrish. -minimal man
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Second moody single from the upcoming Paul Randolph (old Amp Fiddler, KDJ/Mahogani Music, Carl Craig's Innerzone Orchestra collaborator) album for Still Music. An organic-feel track(1) with Paul's dark soulful vocals on top, backed-up with a remix from Mike Banks(2) aka Mad Mike...
expand review (of Underground Resistance fame) that brights up the tune a bit; kinda similar to his legendary Happy Trax classics. -the mgmnt
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6 track EP from buzz artist Robert O'Dell who has previously appeared on Rephlex, and now makes the debut release of UK label Citinite. O'Dell falls solidly in the whole future soul movement, in the same vicinity Sa-Ra and Plant Life. Dude...
expand review has a major Prince fetish as witnessed by the opener "Cazelica(1)." O'Dell shows his production acumen on the instrumental "Triple Somersault(2)," a space themed joint that rivals (and beats) any Sa-Ra production I've heard. Check those drums. The b-side starts with the catchiest song of the EP, it's a space-funk version of the Rolling Stones' disco crossover hit "Miss You(3)." "Devine(4)" provides yet another stylistic wrinkle, as O'Dell does the indy thing, sounding like a late nineties new wave revival band. 6 tracks, lots of potential. -the mgmnt
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Detroit classic. Totally original. A trip. Some of the usual comments when it comes to any Theo Parrish / Sound Signature release - but this is one is even more so. First full length in a long time (since 2004's Parallel Dimensions),...
expand review and it's a burner. When the album was originally released last year (2007), it sold out everywhere before it actually made it into stores (ed.note: we've never even got it), so here's a second chance. You get all his angles here - from the soulful to offbeat programming to minimal (Chicago) techno, and everything with Theo's special touch. These are some of my favorites picks at a first listen - "They Say(1), Soul Control(2), Galactic Ancestors(3), The Rink(4)," and "Synthetic Flemm(5)" - and if these are touching your g-spot you'll probably love the whole thing. Definitely special and on triple-vinyl to boot. -Bogman
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True story: in a blindfolded taste test, 9 out of 10 Labrats couldn't tell this joint (from Carl Craig's "Tres Demented" alias) from the new Detroit Grand Pubahs track. On "She'z Satan(1)" the Detroit godfather goes in hard with some wildly distorted...
expand review vocals over a dark, dark beat, tellin' tales of how women are evil and will take your money. On the flip, something a little more straightforward and, you know, Carl Craig-y with the lazer-synthy "Brainfreeze(2)." Also includes instrumental and bonus beats for "Satan." -Chris Lemon-Red
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Following Theo Parrish's bigger than big release "Falling Up," comes another super hot Detroit Remixes 10" on Japan's Third Ear, featuring tracks by Amp Fiddler under his Amp Dog Knight moniker, and Malik Pittman. "Butterfly(1)" is Amp Fiddler and Jovante's remix of...
expand review Malik Alston's "Butterfly," a gorgeous deep and jazzy track with beautiful vocals, keys, live timbales and horns. Not to be missed!!! On the flip, the 3 Chairs' Malik Pittman delivers a remix of Darren Abrams' "Loose Piano(2)" that sounds like a very good Theo Parrish record or an old Prescription record. Totally hypnotic with a repeating piano lick, deeeep bass, loose percussion and old school crunchy synth work. The original version of this track was my favorite cut on the Detroit Beatdown LP a few years back, but this remix definitely beats it. -Alison Tara
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