As many readers have pointed out, primary audiences for dance music are often unconcerned with originality when getting down so long as what’s playing is groovy. This fact has been capitalized upon thousands of times the less scrupulous or inspired producers, especially in times where sampling is particularly en vogue. We mention this not to debate the merits of sampling more generally (although someone could have a field day dissecting all the sample-based house music flowing out of the Wolf+Lamb camp alone), but rather how accepted it’s become for artists to replicate high profile tunes for their own gain.

Just months after Alex Kenji and Frederico Scavoused were busted for passing off integral portions of Paperclip People’s “Throw” as their own track, Giacomo Godi and Emiliano Nencioni have been caught with their hands in the KMS back catalog for their track “Beat Me Back.” Its foundational melodic element is swiped wholesale from Reese & Santonio’s “The Sound,” just pitched up and ensconced in skippy percussion. That they sampled Kevin Saunderson’s 1987 big hit isn’t a damnable offense; it’s that they didn’t have the imagination to do anything beyond using it in the exact same manner as the original. Even Todd Terry, who recycled the same progression for his 1988 track “Back To the Beat,” had the decency to arrange it differently and add a bevy of samples. Saunderson’s response to their profiteering has been spot on: making the original available for free and calling out the culprits. The duo’s excuse, that they thought it was a free sample, acknowledges just how little they put into their track. Audiences may not make a stink about these sorts of matters in the heat of the moment, but they should at least avoid rewarding plagiarists with their money when buying music.

Download: Reese & Santonio, “The Sound”

[NSC Records]

NSC 1-4 is the first release in a series released by and dedicated to the National Sound Corporation, a seminal Detroit business which, since its 1989 inception, has cut thousands of records by local artists. On some small level, the compilation seems potentially forgettable, the kind of venture for which producers might phone in performances. More than ten years after its 1998 release, however, it remains a testament to the relationship between NSC and Detroit techno’s luminaries. Anthony “Shake” Shakir, Underground Resistance, and Kevin Saunderson feature here, all turning in productions that fit neatly within their respective catalogs.

Shake’s “NSC Tracker” is a dense, unrelenting web of percussion, stabs, and effects, and one has little choice but to submit and attempt to find some sense in its maze. After a good six minutes of confusion, slow, brooding pads momentarily creep out of the mix, in what has to be one of the sliest uses of pads in any Detroit techno track. The whirlwind drum programming makes total sense after their entry (and subsequent swift departure), suddenly transformed into some kind of future drum circle rite. Shake’s other two entries are comparatively spare. “Foundry” is a fairly true-school minimal techno track. As its title suggests, an industrial influence is at play, largely in the shrill effects that provide its backdrop. “Landing, Surveying,” meanwhile, pits a repetitive but engrossing drum pattern over quietly droning background atmospherics.

“UR-046,” Underground Resistance’s thunderous contribution, was originally meant for their label. It’s delivered with typical UR stealth, a crisp futurist electro track composed for piloting high-speed vehicles. A discombobulated arpeggio (bearing more than a little resemblance to a banjo) figures prominently, occasionally lapsing into spacey, Millsian interludes. Kevin Saunderson’s “Talk to Me” closes things out. Some cursory Internet research confirms that listeners have been lukewarm on this one, and truthfully, it’s easy to see why. Smudgy and spirited, it could be a basement Inner City demo, but it’s Jazezta Thompson’s tone-deaf vocals that really push things over the edge. If you’re a fan of amateurish dance vocals, you might find her contribution endearing (I do). But it’s hard to deny she erases most of the urbanity Saunderson brings to the production, keeping the track firmly in the realm of novelty. As a whole, NSC 1-4 is a varied but bounteous set, and shouldn’t be missed by Detroit enthusiasts.

01. Shed, Shedding the Past [Ostgut Ton]
In a year that’s shaping up quite nicely for techno/house albums, Shed’s long-playing debut is certain to be at the front of the pack. Internally diverse and unique among its peers, Shedding the Past truly dispenses with familiar forms (4×4 beats are a rarity) while firmly lodging itself in listeners’ pleasure centers with ease. Expect a full review of this beautiful and challenging album once it reaches stores.

02. Dave Aju, “Crazy Place” [Circus Company] (buy)
It’s taken me a minute to come to terms with Dave Aju’s sui generis brand of free jazz-inspired deep house, and I have his latest single, “Crazy Place,” largely to thank for putting things in focus. According to a blog on his Myspace, Aju’s forthcoming album is constructed entirely from sounds made with his mouth, a tactic which is happily apparent on “Crazy Place.” Its sputtering “hi-hat,” chorus of un-finessed vocals and rubbery synth line are endearing in a very human way. Luciano’s flipside remix is another treat, allowing only snippets of skin to show between gleaming metallic percussion. Highly recommended, and Open Wide is highly anticipated.

03. Burger/Voigt, “Wand Aus Klang” [Kompakt] (buy)
It seems Wolfgang Voigt has caught the producing bug again: rekindling the Gas moniker, reviving the Profan label, and working with longtime partner, Jorg Burger. Their new “Roter Platz” single proves this is a good thing, as it revisits the pair’s seminal [Las Vegas] sound: a potent blend of electronics and rock which might just give you goosebumps. “Wand Aus Klang” (wall of sound, roughly) is the duo’s stunning addition to the shoegaze cannon, a gauzy drift down a droning river where guitars spar and vocals coo.

04. Kelley Polar, “Magic Dance” [Rapster Records] (buy)
Any track opening with a request to “slap that baby” is sure to get listeners’ attention. But in the case of Kelley Polar’s fantastic David Bowie cover for the Life Beyond Mars compilation, it’s the music’s frantic frot which pulls me in, especially Polar’s stacked vocal harmonies. I can’t wait to start a night with this, half for audience reaction, half because I know they’ll love it.

05. Kevin Saunderson, “Good Love” (Luciano’s Good Love Remix) [KMS] (buy)
Colin already did a good job describing Luciano’s series-beating remix of “Good Love,” but my enthusiasm overfloweth. Luciano’s signature warmth and restraint serves Paris Grey’s eyes-on-the-prize well, which is sparingly wrapped in flaring synth progressions and reinforced by unhinged sub-bass. And being the consummate DJ himself, Luciano tailors the remix for interesting mixes, as this one is sure to get aired out often this summer.

06. STL, “Zeitsprung” [Something] (buy)
07. Niggemann & Poppcke, “L’Aurora” (Agnès Chicago Take) [Moonpool] (buy)
08. Cassy, “Idle Blues” [Cassy] (buy)
09. Andri, “Ala Bass” [Slutfunk Records] (buy)
10. John Daly, “Countdown to Zero” [Wave Music] (buy)

[KMS]

Fans of this website are no doubt aware of the remix series which has seen a host of modern techno and house luminaries breathe fresh life into classic Kevin Saunderson productions on KMS. “History Elevate” has given our ears a few sensational pieces of music, some of which may indeed emerge as classics in their own right. These mixes couldn’t have arrived at a better time to pose interesting questions about the role of Detroit in forging the template of modern techno. A lot of neo-Detroit records have hit the bins in the past few years, many of which have been fashionable pastiche paying homage to the idea of Detroit techno while failing to innovate in the way the originals did. For reference, see Don Williams, “Detroit Red” — more or less a bare bones tool with a basic beat and vocal repeating “the city of Detroit” — which nevertheless seemed to generate buzz on the ‘net. In fact, it’s noteworthy that many of the best reworks have jettisoned most of the original elements for almost entirely new tracks: Mathew Jonson’s take on Inner City’s “Good Life,” already discussed in these pages, is a clear example.

Another is Luciano’s remix of “Good Love,” which will undoubtedly form one of the brightest jewels in the crown of an already strong series. Luciano uses fairly typical Cadenza-style drums that are funky, breezy and propulsive all at once to build a suitably gorgeous remix around Paris Grey’s devilishly sensual original vocal. The raggedy synth line and hints of female orgasm he adds might have completed the track for some producers. However, the addition of a low and somewhat detached sounding bass note (reminiscent of the one Shackleton uses on “Blood On My Hands”) propels Luciano’s mix into very different territory than “let’s get the job done and call it a day.” Not only does the bass seem to do the impossible by drawing even more sultry depth out of the vocal, it also puts an irrefutably original stamp on the track. In this manner Luciano has probably provided a good lesson to people who are “neo” anything, namely that former glory is only done justice by interpretations glorious in their own right.

Jesse Rose doesn’t fall into the trap of trying to be someone else; he is true to form. The problem is his current sound is jacking but not very interesting, and neither is his “World of Deep” remix. It brings some harmony and warmth to the fold and is very four to the floor, sounding just a hair shy of becoming the sort of commercial house that might grace the next Ministry of Sound mix. In short, it’s not imitation but nor is it likely to be imitated in decades to come, although whatever was next to this Luciano mix was bound to be just a flipside anyway.

[KMS]

While parsing through a slightly heated discussion over whether Kevin Saunderson’s recent RA podcast – packed with poppy cuts and mixed with CDs/Ableton — had stained his legendary status, one post stood out to me. The author reminded the participants that Saunderson’s long career took place both above ground and underground, so it shouldn’t have been a surprise for him to select from both realms. For me, this thought fits nicely with his choice to reintroduce fans to his musical peaks with three remix 12″s, when he could have easily just re-pressed his best and assumed others would put together the pieces. Saunderson reached out to others to give fans what they really wanted: something fresh, relevant and celebratory of dance music’s watershed moments, grumbling Detroit-centrics be damned. Now Mathew Jonson and John Tejada have followed the footsteps of Joris Voorn, Carl Craig, Samuel L Session and Loco Dice in taking on two classic KMS tunes.

Wagon Repair head honcho, Mathew Jonson, had the un/enviable task of reworking Inner City’s “Good Life,” one of house music’s best known tunes. Rather than deal with all that baggage, Jonson reached for his 303 collection and jumped in an acid bath, leaving only Paris Grey’s sultry vocals bobbing above the surface. The slinky, coiled nature of Jonson’s corrosive progressions lock tightly into Grey’s bouncy and filtered pipes, an odd yet pleasing combination. And because it avoids 2008′s current trends, MJ’s rework might actually avoid sounding dated. By contrast, John Tejada’s grumbling revision of Reese’s “Just Want Another Chance” already sounds like it belongs in 2006-7. Its main gruff, four note groove and plinking synth lead call to mind Stephan Bodzin and Border Community’s signature growls. Perhaps this trait has long since been attributed to Tejada, but to the unfamiliar it feels like old news. Something tells me Saunderson probably doesn’t mind.