Back catalogue: Deep House

Review: ***B-STOCK: Slight surface marks on the record, product in perfect working order***


The most sought-after release from the entire Sounds catalogue, Gemini and Unit T's 1995 release, 'Sideburns', finally gets a much-needed reissue. A1 track, 'Trip', is a prime example of deep house if there ever was one. An infectious, encircling melody meets the deep groove of the bassline to create a finished product that is in equal measure sun-soaked and cosmic. 'B Trip', the A2 track, is a gloriously shifted, off-beat reimagining of A1, pummeling percussion reverberates across the track, left alone to enjoy moments where everything is stripped back, before the body of the track returns. On the B-side, 'Mystery Tones' arrives with the kind of groove that instantly makes its way across dancefloors - a unifying track that feels precise in its simplicity, whilst still retaining exactly the right degree of looseness to get a crowd moving. This is a must-have record for any deep house aficionados, and you can now save yourself the hefty Discogs price tag!

Review: Improper Touch presents the second outing by UG/NG, a collaboration between Yuji Kawasaki (Joy) and Nao Gunji (A_A, Third Ear, King Street, Dopeus). Engineered specifically to slap off classic Klipsch systems, the pair deliver three cuts of pulsating, warm leftfield house. 'UGNG3' is a splashy, euphoric Dinosaur L-esque disco house plodder, 'UGNG4.1' a more orthodox jacker replete with loose congas, clouds of hazy pad, and timeless d floor invocations, and the closer 'UGNG4.2' a cruise control roller calling to mind Larry Heard's early 00s bliss-outs. Top notch.

Review: We will always have time to check out whatever it is that Glenn Underground is serving up. The Chicago house mainstay has carved out his own distinctive sound over the last three decades and much of it comes on his own Strictly Jazz Unit. This latest drop is a reissue of his classic 'Cloud Burst'. It is a track that sits on the more raw and physical end of his personal spectrum with jacked-up drums and plenty of percussion run through with some wispy synths and the crunchiest of snares. A high-impact dancefloor weapon for sure.

Review: Chicago house mainstay Glenn Underground is as good at crafting neat edits of the classics as he is serving up his own superb original house compositions. It is the former which he does here on his own label and first up on the A-side he adds his signature smooth grooves to a track but the late, great funk master Amp Fiddler. The B-side begins with his Retro mix of beatmaker extraordinaire Mos Def which has loose-limbed drums and soulful pads that reach to the heavens, then he looks to acid jazz innovators Incognito and their 'I Can See The Future' and flips it into a nice funky and drawn out house groove for vibrant dance floor fun.

Review: From the artwork to the vocal stamps to the beats themselves, this is a brilliantly retro-tactic release that brings plenty of nostalgia to the dance floor. Ursula 100 serves up the goods with 'Movin' 2 The Sound' - a dense and intense cut with vocals musing on drum beats and rocking the house, electro-tinged bass and lashings of acid with plenty of analogue percussive sounds. The Acid Jerks Refix strips away some of the noise to focus on the 303 and loopy vocal fragments and Fort Knox 5 up the acid-electro vibes on their rework. Last of all, the DJ Absolutely Shit remix brings some big jungle breakbeats and lively sax. A fun and destructive EP for sure.