Last time LWE checked in with Delano Smith, he was making probably the only decent record of 2008 that namechecked “Detroit.” Smith’s “Something For Myself,” off the “Sunrise EP,” vocalized what many people might have forgotten about the Motor City: “There’s so many sounds, it’s limitless.” The likes of Reggie Dokes, Theo Parrish, Andrés or “Shake” Shakir have all backed up that claim this year with a bewildering variety of music that has been anything but predictable, and defied any preconceived notions about what the term “Detroit techno” might define. Smith’s own uniformly excellent releases this year, however, have been markedly less avant-garde than say, Theo’s wilder 2009 moments. Smith, having labored under the tutelage of the legendary Ken Collier in his formative years, has a far more classicist bent than some of his peers; nonetheless, “Midnite” may surprise a few people who have more conservative expectations of the D.

Opener “A Special Kind Of” may come as a shock to some fans of “Sunrise”; it’s essentially a disco edit, but to attentive students of Detroit’s musical history it can be read as a tribute to Collier in a similar manner to Terrence Parker’s recently re-released “Your Love.” A bouncing house beat, a stomping honky-tonk piano riff, rising strings, and an infectious vocal exclaiming “you must be some special kind of freeeeeak” are the simple ingredients for a slice of dance floor satisfaction that could have been made any time in the last twenty years. And it sounds no worse for that. Still, those who found themselves drawn time and time again into Smith’s orbit by his emotive early morning vibes on the previous Third Ear excursion will not be disappointed by “Dees Gruv” or “The Explanation.” High quality, deeper techno workouts in the vein of Sistrum or Aesthetic Audio, there is little to say about either other than that both should be ruthlessly effective at keeping people moving in the later hours. Closing track “Truth” shares similarities with previous Mixmode tune “This Heart” — clicky, funky percussion matched to repetition of the titular phrase. Functional is not a four-letter word. “Midnite” is a reasonably eclectic, absolutely solid record of four tracks that like “Sunrise” will not blow your head, but will keep it nodding for far longer than your average floor fodder. Smith’s sounds may not be limitless, but they might still be timeless.

[Third Ear Recordings]

Those who insist on being bitter when techno journalism continues to focus on Detroit might as well complain historians of impressionist painting overemphasize Paris, or that fans of martial arts films give too much credit to China. With locally known but globally unsung veteran producers like Patrice Scott, Mike Huckaby, Scott Grooves, and now Delano Smith continuing to release some of the best tracks of recent memory, it’s just an unavoidable subject. So don’t be surprised to hear a voice point out on “Something for Myself,” the lead track from the “Sunrise EP,” that Smith is “from Detroit, from Detroit, from Detroit.” When he adds that “there’s so many sounds; it’s limitless,” it doesn’t just apply to his hometown’s cultural heritage — he might as well be talking about this record.

Smith’s oeuvre is full of grooves that manage to simultaneously soothe and invigorate, and “Sunrise EP” is no different. “Something for Myself” layers its vocals over a two-note bass line that sounds different with just about every repetition — funky one moment, melancholy the next. “Cosmos Revisited” follows an abrasive, modulating synth line across celestial chords and a seismic bass line. It’s as likely to make you contemplate the vastness of the universe as it is to make you dance, but no one said you can’t do both at once. The darkly melodic “Synergy” is something like thumb piano house, while the nearly overwhelming “Trans” floods your eardrums with an infusion of harmonic textures. Reminiscent of Juan Atkins’ most introspective productions, with the meticulous simplicity of Robert Hood’s minimalism, these tracks make you feel like a dance floor has just lifted off the ground and taken you with it.