Various Artists- Wulongzu Weapons Vol. 1

About:


Wulongzu has already seen light as early as 2002 as a DJ-booking and promotions company founded by Shandong-based Filipino DJ and producer, Aldwin Macapagal. The company have had notable successes in enlisting top DJs from the Philippines and China for several of Wulongzu's events, and by 2004, Wulongzu started to seek out artists from around the world. Six years later, Wulongzu Records was born to aid in the propagation of house music in Mainland China.


After belting out a couple of releases on the label, Wulongzu finally releases its first release-compilation dubbed, "Wulongzu Weapons Vol. 1". Artists who have previously appeared on the label-- Diego Marcelo, Marc Galindo, Karlos Kastillo, and Aldwin Macapagal himself-- are back to deliver their own respective masterpieces. On the other hand, Weapons Vol. 1 also highlights the debuts of Danny Garlick, Andrez Florez, and the highly-acclaimed Finnish artists, Lovetone (Anton Sonin)  and Turismo!


Sounds Like:


The sound of Wulongzu does not deviate far from that of Gabriel Rocha's and Mark Knight's-- two highly-acclaimed producers who have perfected the balance between tech and tribal. Weapons Vol. 1 actually features a rare-shade of that organic tribal-tech sound that will prove very handy on the modern-day battlefield called the dance-floor. Let the heavy, deep and echoing vocal chants be your war cry while let the timely interplay of stabs and bass be your cadence to war.


Recommend:


Even at first listen, we already knew we had to recommend all the tracks on Weapons Vol. 1. At first, we even tried to higher our standards so we could filter-out better the tracks, but our efforts had been futile-- the more you listen to the whole release, the more you will realize that each track on the roster really has its intrinsic dance value and will truly serve you well on the field. 


Choose your weapon!

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Seraphine- Going Deep EP

About: 

Seraphine (Sylwester Gębczyk) is without a doubt, one of the few breakthrough artists in the deep house scene in 2011. He has nailed releases on A-list labels such as DeepWit Recordings, Brown Eyed Boyz Records, and Cromarti Records to name a few, and this release on Solardish Records, "Going Deep EP" simply shows how in-demand Seraphine's crafts are in the scene. 

"Going Deep EP" essentially features two tracks remixed by Seraphine, two tracks that will demonstrate that anything this guy touches turns into gold!

Sounds Like:

Let's keep it short but sweet. Both Seraphine remixes of Cike's "Dramamine" and Multiphase & Keen's "Afterglow" are on their own flawlessly deep reworks. "Dramamine" caters laid-back vibe from the Rhodes and a resonating pattern of stabs and vocal snippets. "Afterglow", on the other hand, rains down a smoother array of sounds from Seraphine, and expect it to be, obviously, deep.

Recommendation:

These are the kinds of tracks a deep house DJ can easily rely on-- they work well in dark club rooms or in laid-back open-air bars. Well, to be more specific, take "Dramamine" with you in your main room escapades while trust "Afterglow" to do its job in the cozy outdoors. Either way, both tracks will definitely not disappoint you.

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Miguel Libre- Minima

After making his debut appearance on Deeper Manila with “Intriphisticated”, Filipino DJ and producer, Miguel Libre is back with “Minima”-- a brand-new concoction of glitch vocals, uplifting atmosphere, and deep groove!


Three superb remixes accompany “Minima”: two from label owner Justin de Guzman that will keep you jackin’ on the dance-floor, and one from Spanish import, David Garcia aka. DeepHope, that will show how they define deep house in his hometown.

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Marco Grandi- Love

About:

Hungarian producer Csaba Kiss makes his grand debut appearance as Marco Grandi on Ready Mix Records-- the prestigious Montreal-based label founded by Adel "Big Al" Ghandour-- with the stunning deep house masterpiece, "Love". Aside from the original mix by Grandi, first-rate remixes from Onur Ozman, Le Vinyl &Mani Rivera, and Sendos Fuera also see light in this release and will surely leave you speechless.

Sounds Like:

"Love" the original mix highlights the chic, feel-good groove of Marco Grandi's sounds. Not just that, you also get your ears fixated on lush reverberated chords Marco had patched up together with the seemingly-hypnotizing vocal snippets and the grounding bass. 

Onur Ozman, hailed as one of the leading contemporary deep house artists, takes one for "Love" with his elegant reinterpretation dubbed as the "Frozen Confusion Mix". This "Frozen Confusion Mix" in particular offers a dynamic interplay of panning Rhode chords, eerie synth bits, and a refreshing atmosphere. 

Hailing from Barcelona, Spain, Le Vinyl & Mani Rivera are the two producers in charge of this second remix of "Love". Expect a club-oriented approach to "Love" as they induce you to their vast array of arsenal of New York-inspired sound. 

Another Spanish producer, Ernesto Altes who makes sophisticated deep house tracks under the guise "Sendos Fuera" lands a fantastic remix that harmoniously brings together his palette of Ibiza-drenched , Latin-infused grooves. 

Recommendation:

We'll be frank with you guys, it's pretty difficult to pick one single favorite track from this release. The masterminds behind these masterpieces have made sure that each production lives up to not only their discerning tastes but also to that of the people behind Ready Mix Records. So to conclude this, we would have to cite ALL the tracks as our favorites, and we strongly recommend you to support and buy them all.

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Gurhan- Between Us EP

About:


Deep House Proposal started out as a night club in Istanbul, then to focus on delivering music to its people, the brand expanded into the podcasting business. Then now, with more ambition than ever, DHP launches its first release as a record label. First up in their promising line-up of artists is Gurhan Kcyigit, aka. Gurhan, also a fellow artist in Instanbul with the two-track release, "Between Us EP".


Sounds Like:


It's our first time to actually hear the sounds of Gurhan, and we're pretty surprised with the quality of work he has come up with. To delve into the deep side of his sound, let's breeze through his two tracks in this release, "Between Us" and "What You Say". 


First, "Between Us", caters dark atmosphere, heavily filtered and reverberated stabs, groovy slabs of vocals, and a hypnotizing deep bass. "What You Say" on the other hand portrays the more organic side of Gurhan's productions. Prepare yourselves for rock-solid kicks, heavy bass,   heavily-flanged synths all wrapped into one fantastic track!


Recommendation:


This first release from Deep House Proposal really amazed us. We'll stick around more with this label for more releases in the future! Oh and our recommendation: get both tracks!

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Seraphine- Costa Lounge

About:


DeepWit Recordings takes us into the depths of audio perception once again, this time with Seraphine's brand new release, "Costa Lounge". Seraphine, for starters, is the guise of Polish deep house producer and DJ, Sylwester Gębczyk. But don't get us wrong, Seraphine is no new name on the label. In fact, "State of Mind and Memories" was Seraphine's debut release (together with Silt) on DeepWit back in May 2011, while "Just a Dream", also another track from him was included in the highly-acclaimed DeepWit Recordings Autumn Sampler. 


"Costa Lounge" is a four-track release that not only features Seraphine's two originals: "Costa Lounge" and "Another Boring Love Story", but also showcases the sounds of fellow-Polish artist, Tom Bednarczyk and DeepWit head honcho, Alvaro Hylander!


Sounds Like:


"Costa Lounge", the original mix is all about the deep Rhode chords, resonant vocal samples, and punchy hi-hat work. Of course, the bass is a given-- deep, groovy, smooth. This original mix, in addition, is something one would fully appreciate on a roof-deck or on a balcony far away from bustling cities. 


The Tom Bednarczyk remix of "Costa Lounge" on the other hand intensifies the energy of the track by adding more resonance and by giving more emphasis on the percussion-- brilliant.


Things get a little darker with "Another Boring Love Story"-- a track dubbed with a seemingly seductive dialogue sample and patched up with a strongly filtered and flanged chord. 


Last, Alvaro Hylander takes "Another Boring Love Story" and turns it into one of his own. Expect the trademark sound of Alvaro Hylander: a sound of discriminating shade of deepness that will definitely seduce you to the deeper side of sound.




Recommendation:


"Costa Lounge" from the elegant title itself seemed promising-- it was something that enticed us into expecting something of pure quality and class. The actual release didn't deviate far from our expectations: Seraphine walked the talk with this fantastic release and it also made us want to look forward to more of his productions!


We also think it would be premature to end this review without recommending the fine fine FINE craft from Alvaro Hylander, so guys, don't even attempt to check-out your cart without the Alvaro Hylander remix of "Another Boring Love Story"!

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