ALBUMS COMPILATIONS/MIXES 3"/7"/10"/12"/EPs
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DJ Koze:
Kosi Comes Around/Remixes Part 1
Oxia: Change Works/Domino
Superpitcher/Stardiver: Enzian/Borderline The Kompakt empire rolls on with three new 12-inch additions to its deep catalogue. First up is Speicher 34 which Oxia (Olivier Raymond) gets all to himself and makes the most of with cuts that sound both equally steamy and chilled. The percolating stomper “Change Works” works up its ebb and flow with precision-tooled grace, all the while egged on by a hammerhead three-note theme that threatens to bore a hole through your skull it repeats so mercilessly. A locomotive chug propels the pulsating trance burner “Domino” with a syncopated bass motif a prod for the darkly gothic electro thrum Raymond sprinkles overtop. Speicher 35 finds Superpitcher (Aksel Schaufler) jumpstarting a goosestep lurch with a tiny handclap and itchy electro patterns in the 10-minute “Enzian” before moving into some tasty backwards effects and progressively more coiled acid business. Schaufler masterfully balances the tune's multiple layers, creating an omnipresent weave between their acid synths, swishing hi-hat patterns, and brightly billowing electronic flares. Is Stardriver's “Borderline” a cover of the old Madonna song? Not recognizably so at least. It is, however, a spindly slice of tick-tock electro that goes down smoothly enough. All well and good but don't overlook Mr. Stefan Kozalla and specifically the first remix single (featuring cuts by Jan Jelinek, International Pony, and Matthew Dear) of material drawn from last summer's Kosi Comes Around. Jelinek's 'Farben's Hidden Diskoharfen-Mix' of “My Grandmotha” is as entrancing as anyone familiar with his work would expect. The subtly grooving textured mass that anchors the mix doesn't surprise so much but what does is Jelinek's incorporation of vocal effects. A lovely complement to the Farben cut, International Pony's gentle ambient mix of “Bobby” is a warm, propulsive, and vibrant breath of fresh air. On the B side, Audion (Matthew Dear) rejiggers “Raw” into a swinging sea of panning smears and pinprick clicks that would sound right at home on Suckfish. One of the most appealing things about the first remix single is that, while it's rooted in techno, it ranges stylistically far beyond it, due in no small part to the personnel involved. July 2006
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