Welcome to the fourteenth edition of our series of short interviews affectionately titled Talking Shop. The majority of media and fan attention gets showered on the artists who create the music we love to listen to/DJ with/dance to, and for good reasons. But without the hard work, keen ears and business savvy of label staff, we’d be stuck only streaming tracks on Myspace. Mule Musiq, one of Japan’s leading techno/house labels, is the focus of our attention this time around. Owned and operated by Toshiya Kawasaki, Mule Musiq (and its sub-labels, Mule Electronic and Endless Flight) offers a uniquely Japanese point of view that’s helped popularize Force of Nature and Kuniyuki, while also hosting standout releases from Terre Thaemlitz, Minilogue, Henrik Schwarz, Lawrence and even Lydia Lunch (among many others). Mr. Kawasaki was kind enough to answer our questions about the differences between Japanese and Western music industries, the label’s origins and Mule Musiq’s philosophy for running a successful label. He acknowledged that his English isn’t perfect and encouraged us to make sense of his replies; hopefully our edits remain true to the spirit of his answers.

Please tell me about the beginning of Mule Musiq. Why and how did you start out? How did you decide on the name Mule Musiq?

I had worked for clothing company for long time before I started Mule Musiq. I founded a small label with the clothing company, but this label was closed after only one release for some reason. After that,I founded the select shop of CDs and some special products with another clothing company in Kyoto. At the same time I started Mule Musiq, but in the beginning it was not a label, it was a promoter company. I invited many underground artists such as Luciano, Henrik Schwarz, Optimo and other artists from Kompakt and Playhouse. There was not a special reason that I started Mule Musiq. Maybe the only reason is I often received much music from young producers, as I was always looking for new live acts for my party. Kompakt gave me the opportunity to distribut my release outside of japan. Actually it’s really difficult thing for Japanese labels. I wanted to have the name like a perfume, because it’s used everyday and good one is modern and timeless. Both [being] modern and timeless are necessary for my releases as well.

How did you select the artists for Mule Musiq’s roster?

When the label was started, almost artist were my friends.

Do you get many demos? What are some qualities you look for when sorting through them?

Now I get a lot. I actually have no expectations for the demos which come by e-mail in particular, but
I listen carefully to the demos that come by post and the process is important for me to release.

What is one of your favorite releases on your own label? Why?

Kuniyuki, “Earth Beats.” This track is a very uniquie fusion of Kraut rock,jazz, ethnic music and deep house. It’s very timeless and still fresh for me.

According to many doomsayers, running a record label isn’t one of the “smartest” fiscal things to do. How do you keep Mule Musiq running with sales “as they are”? How has the closure of many distributors affected Mule Musiq?

First, I’m not the person who wants to do smart things! I’m working very hard for the label but still doing the promoter work and fashion business. But all industries [are experiencing difficulties] at the moment. I haven’t had a big problem from the closure of distributors, but in Toyko many record store have closed. Five years ago, there are over 80 record stores in one area, Shibuya. I go to the record store on Monday night and Saturday evening every week to buy new releases, but now there are no record stores which have the shipping from each overseas distributors every week.

I understand the music/recording industry in Japan is different from the industries in Europe or America. Because Mule Musiq is from Japan, does it change the way you run your business and interact with labels/artists/distributors around the world? How so?

I live in Tokyo, but my all releases are distributed from Germany and manufactured in Europe. I haven’t thought about the difference of the industries between Japan and overseas, but the music scene where
I am now is like a small village, everything is close [together].

Do you think blogs like LWE help or hurt the music industry? Do you think blogs have a role in the future of dance music promotion? Do you read music blogs?

Yes, helping a lot and already a big role for the promotion. I always looking forward [to new content on] my favorite blogs. I like you!

There is no shortage of labels in dance music. What does Mule Musiq do to stand out from the crowd? What does Mule Musiq deliberately not do?

I’m doing what I want to do, and only this.

As technology advances further, vinyl is moving closer to becoming obsolete to many DJs. What are your feelings on this? Do you think the end of vinyl is in sight?

I hear some DJs are going to buy the vinyl again. Me too. I don’t download and [instead] buy the vinyl to save this world. But the sad thing is I have to sell mp3s to continue the label.

What are a few other labels you respect/revere most?

I like the labels who have a wide range with good sensibilities, but there are very few. Almost all label go only one direction. I like DFA very much and Lawrence’s Dial is always beautiful.

What can we expect from Mule Musiq in the next year or so?

Many things to come! The CD release of our first ambient compilation called Enjoy the Silence, with all exclusive songs from DJ Koze, DJ Sprinkles, Thomas Fehlmann, Jan Jelinek and more. There’s a new compilation of Mule Electronic, My Favorite Things Vol.2, a Mule Musiq compilation I’m Starting To Feel OK Vol.3,an album from Lawrence album, and a Japanese artists compilation. There are also exciting 12 inches from Isolee, John Daly, Mark E, Minilogue, Soft Rocks, Move D and many more.

[Ramp Recordings]

Zomby sees himself as part of the undead but with a taste for skunk weed instead of flesh. He is a resolutely anonymous producer whose publicity photo has few clues into his identity: he wears white gloves and a mask of the all-seeing eye of providence. Zomby’s been banned from dubstep forums, infamous for missing gigs and has no small legion of fans who’ll call him a cock while still admiring his tunes. And 2008 was big for Zomby tunes. Starting with “Mush,” his 8-bit mourn of a debut for Hyperdub, Zomby has since dropped two wonky bombs with his “Liquid Dancehall” single and debut album, Where Were U in ’92? As much as electronic music likes to micro-manage it’s sub-genres, Zomby diversifies his portfolio as much as possible. Witness the range on his upcoming self-titled EP — shotgun burbles of “Aquafresh” rub next to the woeful Burial sighs of “Test Me for a Reason.”

“The Lie” was Zomby’s second single for Ramp Recordings in 2008, and unsurprisingly, it sounds nothing like his first. Instead of fluorescent melodies, “The Lie” is built around a cement-rubbed drone, roughed up and buzzing. Drums might pop and explode like other half-step producers (a la Skream) but there’s none of the cool functionalism — the pummeling is all inward. Taking a Ricky L. sample that oscillates between teen angst and Jah anomy (“I was born in a system / that doesn’t give a fuck about me”), the vocals are treated with a sheen of delay and rebuilt around a series of clipped hiccups and hyahs. There’s something uncanny about how the track operates: it circles around like a vulture, picking apart the vocal sample until there’s nothing left. The L.V. remix, then, is wise to focus on the drums, adding large waves of delay which rock the track like a ship. The single is rounded out nicely by “Dripping Like Water,” which is built on a staircase bass line, melodica and the wheeze of an old record talking about water. A series of compelling contrasts, “The Lie” continues Zomby’s skunk-fueled trudge across aesthetics and offers perhaps his most affecting single of 2008.

04. The Mole, “Baby, You’re The One”
[Wagon Repair] (buy)
The Mole really out-did himself with this towering monster of a track, finding the perfect intersection between poppy house music and forcefully looped production. Whirling onto dance floors like a cyclone, it was near impossible not to be ensnared in its hopscotched rhythms, chanting along to fiercely cheerful vocal samples, heads thrown back, faces plastered with smiles. Some of my favorite moments while dancing this year involved this song and massive amplification, and I think I know why. (Steve Mizek)

03. Dave Aju, “Crazy Place”
[Circus Company] (buy)
It’s hard not to think of “Crazy Place” as epic — all slow motion build, a wobbling warm siren against a landscape of percussion. But even though “Crazy Place” might’ve been built from Aju’s mouth, what really mattered is how large he could make it sound. Open wide, indeed. (Nate DeYoung)

02. DJ Bone, “No Sleep (True To Da Roots)”
[Sect Records] (buy)
In a year where the influence of the Motor City was proliferate in house and techno, one of its native sons effortlessly showed the rest how it’s done with this jacking, emotive firestorm of a track. With its tough, raw proclivity and yearning, melodic soul all filtered through a mesmerizing key line “No Sleep” made itself a 2008 essential. This faultless stripped back funk served as reminder that sometimes it’s the simpler things that pack the most heart. (Per Bojsen-Moller)

01. tobias., “I Can’t Fight The Feeling”
[Wagon Repair] (buy)
2008 will be remembered as the year Tobias Freund struck back. Whether it was a tirelessly excellent stream of remixes or his work for Wagon Repair and Ostgut Tonträger, Freund was at the top of his game and a resurgent master of techno. The year’s best song was also his, the hypnotic “I Can’t Fight The Feeling.” Freund coaxes such sympathetically savage patterns from his synths which grow more potent each time the sultry vocals crawl up your spine and into your brain. Connecting with body and soul, “I Can’t Fight The Feeling” is the deepest and most heartfelt piece of techno I’ve heard all year. (Steve Mizek)

Read individual staff lists after the jump.

Staff Singles List:

Per Bojsen-Moller:
01. Vladislav Delay, “Recovery Idea” (Andy Stott remix) [Semantica Records]
02. DJ Bone, “No Sleep (True To Da Roots)” [Sect Records]
03. Claro Intelecto, “Operation” [Modern Love]
04. Prosumer & Murat Tepeli, “Serenity” (Soundstream’s Dusty Machine Mix) [Ostgut Tonträger]
05. Force Of Nature, “Sequencer” (Stefan Goldmann Macro Version) [Mule Musiq]
06. Bvdub, “Vermillion” [Millions Of Moments]
07. Shackleton, “Death Is Not Final” [Skull Disco]
08. TRG, “Broken Heart” (Martyn’s DCM remix) [Hessle Audio]
09. Silent Servant, “Lo Profundo” [Historia Y Violencia]
10. Black Dog, “Train By The Autobahn” (Robert Hood’s DJ Mix)
[Soma Quality Recordings]
11. Headhunter, “In Motion” [Tempa]
12. Sascha Funke, “Mango” (DJ Koze’s Pink Moon remix) [BPitch Control]
13. Santiago Salazar, “Santuario” [Historia Y Violencia]
14. Simon Flower, “Still Here, Still There” [Curl Curl]
15. Miss Fitz, “Drifting On” [Contexterrior]
16. Sami Koivikko, “Sapphire” (Daso & Pawas remix) [Spectral Sound]
17. Deadbeat, “Deep Structure” [Wagon Repair]
18. Nicolas Jaar, “The Student” [Wolf + Lamb]
19. Kenny Larkin, “Glob” [Planet E]
20. Morgan Geist, “Detroit” [Environ]
21. Seth Troxler & Patrick Russell, “Love Spray” [Circus Company]
22. DJ Koze, “I Want To Sleep” [International Records Recordings]
23. Wareika, “Belonging” (Vocal Mix) [Eskimo Records]
24. 2562, “Channel Two” [Tectonic]
25. Mikkel Metal, “Lumever” [Echochord]
26. Appleblim & Peverelist, “Circling” [Skull Disco]
27. Slowhouse, “Slowhouse 2 A1″ [Slowhouse]
28. Loco Dice, “Black Truffles” [Desolat]
29. Ricardo Villalobos, “Minimoonstar” [Perlon]
30. Move D, “Drøne” [Modern Love]

Jon Dale:
01. DJ Sprinkles, “Ball’r (Madonna Free Zone)” [Mule Musiq]
02. Barbara Morgenstern, “Come To Berlin” [Monika Enterprise]
03. Matias Aguayo, “Minimal” [Kompakt]
04. Ricardo Villalobos, “Enfants” [Sei Es Drum]
05. A Guy Called Gerald, “In Ya Head” [Perlon]

Nate DeYoung:
01. Appleblim & Peverelist, “Circling” [Skull Disco]
02. Paleface feat. Kyla, “Do You Mind” (Crazy Cousins remix) [Maximum Bass]
03. Omar-S, “Psychotic Photosynthesis” [FXHE]
04. DJ Koze, “Zou Zou” [Kompakt]
05. Hercules & Love Affair, “Blind” (Frankie Knuckles remix) [DFA]
06. Zomby, “Liquid Dancehall” [Ramp]
07. Matias Aguayo, “Minimal (DJ Koze Remix)” [Kompakt]
08. Move D, “Drøne” [Modern Love]
09. The Mole, “Baby, You’re the One” [Wagon Repair]
10. Dave Aju, “Crazy Place” [Circus Company]
11. D1, “I’m Loving” [Tempa]
12. Matthew Styles, “We Said Nothing” [Diamonds & Pearls Music]
13. Seth Troxler, “Doctor of Romance” [Circus Company]
14. Sascha Dive, “Deepest America” (Moodymann remix) [Ornaments]
15. Mugwump, “Boutade” [Misercord]
16. TRG, “Broken Heart” (Martyn’s DCM remix) [Hessle Audio]
17. Laughing Light of Plenty, “The Rose” [Whatever We Want]
18. Adriano Celentano, “Prisencolinensinaincuisol” (GW Ruff Edit) [Ruff Edits]
19. Darkstar, “Need You” [Hyperdub]
20. Ricardo Villalobos, “Minimoonstar” [Perlon]
21. Sety, “Mogane” (Guillaume & The Coutu Dumonts remix) [Circus Company]
22. Chymera, “Ellipsis” [Figure]
23. C.B. Funk, “Subway to Cologne” [Story]
24. Joker, “Snake Eater” [Soul Motive]
25. The Juan Maclean, “Happy House” [DFA]
26. Afefe Iku, “Mirror Dance” [Yoruba]
27. Loco Dice, “Pimp Jackson is Talkin’ Now!!!” [Desolat]
28. Richard Bartz, “Diamond Girl” [Kompakt]
29. Theo Parrish, “Love Triumphant” [Sound Signature]
30. Andomat 3000, “Vertical Smile” [Cécille Records]

Todd Hutlock:
01. Ricardo Villalobos, “Minimoonstar” [Perlon]
02. Marcel Dettmann, “Lattice” [MDR]
03. Intrusion, “Tswana Dub” (Beat Pharmacy Dub) [echospace [Detroit]]
04. Sascha Dive, “Deepest America (Moodymann remix) [Ornaments]
05. Matias Aguayo, “Minimal” [Kompakt]
06. Dave Aju, “Crazy Place” [Circus Company]
07. Kevin Saunderson, “Good Love” (Luciano’s Good Love remix) [KMS]
08. Pacou, “Sound of Thought” (DeepChord Mix) [Cache]
09. Mikkel Metal, “Frico” (Pole remix) [Echocord]
10. A Guy Called Gerald, “In Ya Head” [Perlon]
11. DJ Bone, “No Sleep (True To Da Roots)” [Sect Records]
12. Petar Dundov, “Oasis” [Music Man Records]
13. tobias., “I Can’t Fight The Feeling” [Wagon Repair]
14. John Roberts, “Hesitate” [Dial]
15. Stimming, “Una Pena” [Diynamic]
16. Portable, “Release” [Perlon]
17. Rhadoo, “Slagare” [Cadenza]
18. Super Flu, “Rattelschneck” [Traum]
19. DOP, “I’m Just A Man” [Eklo]
20. Model 500, “Starlight” (Mike Huckaby SYNTH remix) [echospace [detroit]]
21. Dave Aju, “Crazy Place” (Luciano’s “Likuid” remix) [Circus Company]
22. Omar-S, “The Further You Look – The Less You Will See” [FXHE Records]
23. Francesco Tristano, “The Melody” (C2 remix) [Infiné]
24. Guillaume & The Coutu Dumonts, “They Only Come Out At Night”
[Musique Risquée]
25. Invisible Conga People, “Cable Dazed” [Italians Do It Better]
26. Melchior Productions Ltd, “Choir” [Cadenza]
27. The Mole, “Baby, You’re The One” [Wagon Repair]
28. Cassy, “A Plea For Me” [Cocoon]
29. Efdemin, “America” [Curle Recordings]
30. STL, “Lost In Brown Eyes” [Perlon]

Will Lynch:
01. Move D, “Jus House” [Uzuri]
02. Melchior Productions Ltd, “Who Can Find Me” [Cadenza]
03. Deepchord Presents Echospace, “Untitled” [Modern Love]
04. Prosumer & Murat Tepeli Feat. Elif Biçer, “Turn Around” (Cassysmoothmix) [Ostgut Tonträger]
05. Ricardo Villalobos, “Enfants (Chants)” [Sei Es Drum]
06. Mikael Stavostrand, “Dark Eyes” [Lick My Deck]
07. The Mole, “Baby, You’re the One” [Wagon Repair]
08. Four Tet, “Wing Body Wing” [Domino Recording Company]
09. Matthew Styles, “We Said Nothing” [Diamonds & Pearls Music]
10. Guillaume & The Coutu Dumonts, “They Only Come Out At Night”
[Musique Risquée]
11. Lowtec, “Untitled A1″ [Workshop]
12. Bruno Pronsato & Daze Maxim, “Take 1″ [Musique Risquee]
13. Toby Tobias, “The Feeling” (John Daly remix) [REKIDS]
14. Shed, “Another Wedged Chicken” [Ostgut Tonträger]
15. Shackleton, “Shortwave (Pole remix) [~scape]
16. tobias., “I Can’t Fight The Feeling” [Wagon Repair]
17. Bruno Pronsato, “Nobody Calls” [Hello? Repeat]
18. Kassem Mosse, “578″ [Mikrodisko Recordings]
19. Gabriel Ananda, “Mahatma Regatta” [Platzhirsch Schallplatten]
20. Efdemin, “The Pulse” [Curle Recordings]
21. Radio Slave, “K-Maze” [REKIDS]
22. TRG, “Soho Girls” [Naked Lunch]
23. Forsaken, “Boat Noodles” [Punch Drunk]
24. Adam Beyer & Agaric, “California Gold’ [Mad Eye]
25. Move D, “Drøne” [Modern Love]
26. Pigon, “Kamm” [Beatstreet]
27. Radio Slave, “Tantakatan” (The Drunken Shed Mix) [REKIDS]
28. Claro Intelecto, “Rise” [Modern Love]
29. Peverelist, “Gather” [Punch Drunk]
30. Martyn, “Natural Selection” [3024]

Steve Mizek:
01. tobias., “I Can’t Fight This Feeling” [Wagon Repair]
02. DJ Bone, “No Sleep (True To Da Roots)” [Sect Records]
03. Osborne, “Ruling” [Spectral Sound]
04. Ben Klock, “October” [BPitch Control]
05. Sound Stream, “‘Live’ Goes On” [Sound Stream]
06. Niggemann & Poppke, “L’aurora” (Agnes Chicago Take) [Moonpool]
07. Henrik Schwarz, Ame & Dixon, “D.P.O.M.B.” (Version 2) [Innervisions]
08. Dave Aju, “Crazy Place” [Circus Company]
09. Ricardo Villalobos, “Electonic Water” [Perlon]
10. Lee Jones, “As You Like It” (Recloose remix) [Aus Music]
11. The Mole, “Baby, You’re the One” [Wagon Repair]
12. DJ Sprinkles, “Midtown 120 Blues” [Mule Musiq]
13. Hercules & Love Affair, “Blind” (Hercules Club Mix) [DFA]
14. Mixworks, “Berlin Dub” [Mixworks]
15. Scott, “Memory Core” (Paul Frick remix) [My Best Friend]
16. Matias Aguayo, “Minimal” (DJ Koze remix) [Kompakt]
17. Kevin Saunderson, “Good Love” (Luciano’s Good Love remix) [KMS]
18. SIS, “Nesrib” [Cecille Records]
19. My My, “Everybody’s Talkin” [Playhouse]
20. dOP, “Cum With Me” [Milnor Modern]
21. Intrusion, “Intrusion” (Phase 90 Reshape) [echospace [detroit]]
22. STL, “Zeitsprung” [Something]
23. Melchior Productions, “Who Can Find Me (I Can’t)” [Cadenza]
24. Luke Solomon, “People, Places, Thoughts And Faces” (Ajello Remix) [REKIDS]
25. John Roberts, “Hesitate” [Dial]
26. Matthew Styles, “We Said Nothing” [Diamonds & Pearls Music]
27. Burger/Voigt, “Wand Aus Klang” [Kompakt]
28. Cassy, “A Poem For You” [Uzuri]
29. Brendon Moeller, “N-Train” [Third Ear]
30. Francesco Tristano, “The Melody” (Carl Craig remix) [Infiné]

Colin Shields:
01. Shackleton, “…But The Branch Is Weak” [Skull Disco]
02. Move D & Benjamin Brunn, “Radar” [Smallville Records]
03. Wax, “Wax 10001 A” [Wax]
04. Andy Stott, “Hostile” [Modern Love]
05. Luke Hess & Omar-S, “Renewal Part II” [FXHE Records]
06. tobias., “I Can’t Fight The Feeling” [Wagon Repair]
07. Slowhouse, “Three B1″ [Slowhouse]
08. Lawrence, “Miles” [Dial]
09. Shed, “ITHAW” [Ostgut Tonträger]
10. Move D, “Sisters and Brothers” [Uzuri]
11. Marcel Fengler, “Friction” [Ostgut Tonträger]
12. Sebbo, “Watamu Beach” (Moritz Von Oswald remix) [Desolat]
13. Vladislav Delay, “Recovery Idea” (Andy Stott remix) [Semantica Records]
14. Shackleton, “…But The Branch Is Weak” (Geiom Mix) [Skull Disco]
15. Luke Hess, “Believe and Receive” (Shed’s Deepanddubbydub remix)
[Kontra Musik]
16. Kevin Saunderson, “Good Love” (Luciano’s Good Love remix) [KMS]
17. Model 500, “Starlight” (Mike Huckaby S Y N T H remix) [echospace [detroit]]
18. Omar-S, “The Further You Look – The Less you Will See” [FXHE Records]
19. Radio Slave, “Tantakatan” (The Drunken Shed Mix) [REKIDS]
20. Silent Servant, “Violencia” (Function remix) [Sandwell District]
21. Sven Weisemann, “Slices” (Boris Hotton remix) [liebe*detail spezial]
22. Toby Tobias, “The Feeling” [REKIDS]
23. Sound Stream, “‘Live’ Goes On” [Sound Stream]
24. Martyn, “Vancouver” [3024]
25. Ricardo Villalobos, “Minimoonstar” [Perlon]
26. Radio Slave, “K-Maze” [REKIDS]
27. Marcel Dettmann, “Plain” [Beatstreet]
28. 2562, “Channel Two” [Tectonic]
29. Kassem Mosse, “578″ [Mikrodisko Recordings]
30. Cassy, “Idle Blues” [Cassy]

Read the rest of our Top 20 singles lists:

20-16
15-11
10-6

09. A Guy Called Gerald, “In Ya Head”
[Perlon] (buy)
Gerald Simpson moves into his third decade of production with two aces up his sleeve -– the reissue of his Black Secret Technology, which is still the finest album jungle ever coughed up, and “In Ya Head,” his first single for Perlon. Shacking up with the redoubtable German imprint makes perfect sense; like sometime Perlon peers Villalobos and Pantytec, Simpson keeps things moving even as he’s scratching details into the track’s furthest nooks and crannies. Both sides are great, but while “Moon Jelly” might have the edge texturally (its opening volley of eight-mile-high chords is delicious), “In Ya Head” is so much about the Guy Called Gerald hive mind, it’s quintessential. (Jon Dale)

08. Kevin Saunderson, “Good Love”
(Luciano’s Good Love remix) [KMS] (buy)
Luciano’s 2008 DJ sets were flavored with more deep house sounds than ever before, and his remix of Kevin Saunderson/Inner City’s “Good Love” showed that influence in spades. Looping and layering Paris Grey’s sultry vocals over his trademark percussion and a sleek one-note riff, Luciano created the perfect universal tool for jocks of all genres. Deep, soulful, and infectious, “Good Love” was very good indeed. (Todd Hutlock)

07. Vladislav Delay, “Recovery Idea”
(Andy Stott remix) [Semantica Records] (buy)
Talk about your slow burners. Andy Stott turns his masterful Mancunian hand to the already seriously deep “Recovery Idea” resulting in unchecked subterranean bliss. There’s an almost ethereal air to Stott’s remix; the ascendant strings alone could easily be mistaken for a heavenly choir. The bass is blurred and burrows towards the center of the earth as an intergalactic typewriting pool reels off accompanying effects. Dub techno re-proved itself a major force in 2008 and in no small part because of Andy Stott. (Per Bojsen-Moller)

06. Ricardo Villalobos, “Enfants (Chants)”
[Sei Es Drum] (buy)
The first and only time I went been to Fabric was about a year ago, when Ricardo Villalobos’ popularity was reaching new heights. Fabric 36 was still sinking in, “Sei Es Drum” was hot off the press, and now this weird tool that could only be Ricardo’s was popping up in clubs and on YouTube. Craig Richards and Âme seemed no less enamored than the rest of us, as “Enfants” got at least two healthy rinses that night. No one knew quite what to make of that epic piano line and galvanizing chant, but somehow it was clear that whatever we were hearing would go on to become one of the definitive tracks of the approaching year.
(Will Lynch)

Read Part Four of our top singles list here.

14. Osborne, “Ruling”
[Spectral Sound] (buy)
With so many of this year’s “deep-house” releases sounding more like kiddie pools, it was an absolute joy to dive into the depth of Osborne’s “Ruling.” Making no bones of its touch stones, the track interprets Chicago/Detroit house through its composer’s equally earnest and brainy production style. Hugely soulful and musically bold, “Ruling” was one of the year’s early hits that’s just as striking today (and will remain so in years to come). (Steve Mizek)

13. Matthew Styles, “We Said Nothing”
[Diamonds & Pearls Music] (buy)
Matthew Styles set a time-release bomb with “We Said Nothing.” Originally slated for fall of ’07, it opened to little fanfare in February and as 2008 progressed, it eventually became “impossible to ignore” (noted by LWE’s own editor-in-chief). If Petre Inspirescu’s “Sakadat” had the best detuned drums of last year, “We Said Nothing” takes the cake in ’08 with a fine acid rub to boot. (Nate DeYoung)

12. Matias Aguayo, “Minimal” (DJ Koze remix)
[Kompakt] (buy)
It was somewhat ironic for a producer like Matias Aguayo who’s more than dabbled with minimal techno to release a rather stripped back single which lyrically castigates minimal music. Thankfully the ever reliable DJ Koze was there recast the tune as a breezy summer affair thick with lush pads and tied together by ribbons of guitar licks. Best served chilled, at pool party, along side a raft of DJ Koze’s other brilliant moments from 2008. (Steve Mizek)

11. Ricardo Villalobos, “Minimoonstar”
[Perlon] (buy)
“Minimoonstar” is sinewy, percussive, and yet still laid-back as can be. The grooves and beats interact in ways that beggar belief, but somehow feel like more natural combinations than ninety-nine percent of what else is out there. “Minimoonstar” is a club dream, a politico-sexual poetics of beats and bass, or pretty much any other damn fool thing you want to call it. It deserves to be remembered long after 2008′s ups and downs have faded from thought.
(Colin Shields)

Read Part 3 (10-6) here.

20. Shackleton, “…But The Branch Is Weak”
[Skull Disco] (buy)
Choosing a Shackleton track for which to vote in year end polls is a chore because they’re all so good. “…But The Branch Is Weak,” though, has something of everything Shackleton. There are the drums that sing of the netherworld made with devilish skill, bass that’s only halfway part of the music but wholly essential to it, as well as the breathless sonic space at the core of the track, with an unsettling voice saying bleak things to fill it. Soundboy, it’s a shame you couldn’t stick around longer. (Colin Shields)

19. Move D, “Jus House”
[Uzuri] (buy)
“Quit Quittin’” was the first of nine records Move D released this year, and in some ways it was his best. All four tracks are modest and charismatic, but in the countless spins I’ve given this EP, “Jus House” has emerged as the cream of the crop. With its echo-laden percussion, syrupy break down and crayon colored chords, “Jus House” is a simple and flawless deep-house track. (Will Lynch)

18. DJ Sprinkles, “Ball’r (Madonna-Free Zone)”
[Mule Musiq] (buy)
Should you be surprised that politics and dance music are infrequent bedfellows? Some producers might consider the connection an afterthought, but for DJ Sprinkles (aka Terre Thaemlitz), it’s the fundamental property from which his gorgeously translucent tracks develop. “Ball’r (Madonna Free Zone)” is about the reification of house music, but it’s also about redress, taking key deep-house signifiers and making them so unbelievably lustrous and luscious that the groove’s undeniable. This is one of Thaemlitz’s canniest moves, and one of his most potent productions on every level imaginable. (Jon Dale)

17. Sound Stream, “‘Live’ Goes On”
[Sound Stream] (buy)
Frank Timm took his sensuous, loopy productions to the next level with “‘Live’ Goes On” by breaking his samples into vibrating pixel-sized sounds whose larger picture radiate with hushed energy. From the chunky piano chords to the undulating string samples, “‘Live’ Goes On” finds Sound Stream magnifying and perfecting the DNA of dance music. Easily this pioneer’s finest work to date. (Steve Mizek)

16. Appleblim & Peverelist, “Circling”
[Skull Disco] (buy)
If there was a running meme of the techno-dubstep hybrid in 2008, “Circling” was the first to organically complete the cycle. Appleblim and Peverelist created a track with both the sensual space of Berlin with all the tickling Bristol bass. Defiantly soothing, “Circling” is the perfect twist to the cartoonishly aggressive dubstep scene. (Nate DeYoung)

Read Part 2 (15-11) here.

01. Ben Klock, “October”
[BPitch Control] (buy)
Ben Klock’s “October” may not be as majestic as “Dawning,” his collaboration with Marcel Dettmann, but this forgotten BPitch Control single is just as finely produced and body-rocking. Equally pounding and caressing listeners’ ears, “October” builds an ethereal soundscape for a laser-guided synth line to explode through and bring the dance floor to a boil. Hopefully this perfect slice of Berghain techno is a sign of things to come in Klock’s forthcoming album.

02. Niggemann & Poppcke, “L’aurora” (Agnès Chicago Take)
[Moonpool] (buy)
Few remixers were as strong and consistent as Agnès in 2008, and this oft-overlooked cut is the crown jewel. True to its name, the tune is influenced by the work of Ron Trent and Chez Damier, with Prescription-strength synth stabs tugging wallflowers onto the floor. But Agnès is never beholden to his influences, so he adds orchestral flourishes and segmented vocals to give the tune a well rounded finish. Few tracks from 2008 were as much a pleasure to play to crowds than this remix.

03. Mixworks & Alex Picone, “Berlin Dub”
[Mixworks] (buy)
This unlikely collaboration between newly minted Cadenza artist Alex Picone and a shadowy Detroit duo is a slice of simple perfection. Its incisive synth line hits like a scalpel wielded by a butcher, slicing with a stinging precision reminiscent of Wolfgang Voigt’s Studio 1 project while muffled bass rumbles below. Besides being one of the highlights of Ame’s Fabric mix, “Berlin Dub” got lost in the shuffle. Rest assured it’s still got bite even when buried.

04. Lee Jones, “As You Like It” (Recloose remix)
[Aus Music] (buy)
If the original “As You Like It” was a little flabby, Recloose’s under appreciated remix trimmed back all but the taut, housey muscles which lay underneath. His sample-studded production matches up nicely with Jones’ own aesthetic but with a much larger dose of funk, the outer space kind to be specific. Easily one of the best segue tracks I played out this year, and that’s no small compliment.

05. Daso, “Pars Tensa”
[Connaisseur Recordings] (buy)
Looking back, it is and it isn’t difficult to see how Daso’s masterful B side, “Pars Tensa” was ignored. It ignores all popular palettes for a strange juxtaposition of Flamenco guitar strums and a throbbing 909 bass line which growls behind playful guitarwork and scissoring hi-hats. Keep doing it your own way, Daso; it’s more more interesting that way.

06. Scott, “Memory Core” (Paul Frick remix)
[My Best Friend] (buy)
Paul Frick is my hands down personal favorite emerging producer in 2008 and his cheeky remix of “Memory Core” is exhibit one as to why. His artistic vision is impeccable, having only rearranged the original elements in a vastly more compelling way; and his clever, unabashed sense of humor, which never crosses into novelty, is the cherry on top. Don’t let this stay lost under the banner of digital exclusivity.

07. Dave Shokh, “Chlam”
[Rompecabeza] (buy)
I heard this first at Berghain during Ben Klock’s 8 a.m. shift and it made me rush through the still crowded floor to beg him to reveal its identity. Shokh-ing, indeed, “Chlam” is an immense builder that swells with intensity as it hammers the dance floor before collapsing upon itself. So good and uncelebrated it almost makes me feel bad for this.

08. Luke Solomon, “People, Places, Thoughts and Faces” (Ajello remix) [REKIDS] (buy)
In a year given to disco edits and vocal house proclivities, all the glittery bounce and funky space imparted by Ajello’s Luke Solomon remix ought to be taking up space in a lot more crates. It’s been my great pleasure to tease dance floors with this fantastic remix all year before dropping it in the mix and seeing smiles light up.

09. Intrusion, “Intrusion” (Phase 90 Reshape)
[echospace [detroit]] (buy)
Fist-pumping, floor-stomping, world-beating reshape treatment from Phase 90 takes Intrusion’s self-titled debut from bedroom to dark club basement in seconds. Easily my favorite side of echospace vinyl this year.

10. Telespazio, “Telemetric” (Arto Mwambe’s Guitar Down remix) [Tiny Sticks Records] (buy)
It would be fair to say Arto Mwambe’s thunderous “Telemetric” remix lacks subtly because bombast seems to be the point. But even with crashing piano chords, soaring synths, snare rolls and whimsical vocals, there are finer, less obvious facets (like the string slide noise) which testify to the duo’s production finesse. “Deep-house” audiences still hungover from their minimal binge may cringe at its boldness, but this house head shouts for more.

[Mule Musiq]

Like disco before it, house music was born in queer club culture, one of the few places its artists and patrons — mostly gay minority men — could be themselves without fear of reprisal. And also like disco, house was co-opted by ever larger audiences, shedding its ethnicity and sexuality along the way. With this in mind, Terre Thaemlitz begins Midtown 120 Blues with a challenging statement: “House isn’t so much a sound as a situation.” As she dismisses popular perceptions of what informs house — “life, love, happiness” — in favor of more concrete ones — addiction, sexual/gender crises, queer-bashing, censorship — and frames house geographically in “East Jersey, Loisaida, West Village, and Brooklyn” rather than as a universal phenomenon, the situations which defined the music for him become clearer.

Thaemlitz left the American Midwest in 1986 for New York City, where he DJed in midtown Manhattan transsexual clubs as DJ Sprinkles and witnessed the first bloom of deep-house. Roughly twenty years later, as the sound and definition of deep-house has expanded immeasurably, Midtown 120 Blues serves as an elegy for the scene as she knew it and a kiss off to its current de-contextualized form. Although countless tracks and dozens of artists vocally revere the roots of house music, few offer more than platitudes about its origins. By pointing out its blanched, commercialized trajectory in a series of no-punches-pulled monologues and samples, Thaemlitz bravely confronts listeners with oft glossed over issues and participants in history. Given the scarcity of house tracks which address any sort of social issues, an entire album cast in such a light is a rare, engrossing treat.

Whereas the concepts Thaemlitz presents are provocative, the music of Midtown is more serene. Draped in lush, droning chords, punctuated by crisp, mechanical hi-hat dashes and synthetic snare ellipses, and hovering instead of stomping, its deep-house sound is so deep it’s practically ambient at times. Piano is splashed across many of the album’s 10 tracks in broad, resonating chords carrying listeners forward as much as the percussion. Flute, acoustic guitar and drums and a few other elements round out the sound, underlining particularly emotional motifs and pushing the material towards self-described “fagjazz” on “Sisters, I Don’t Know What This World Is Coming To” and “Reverse Rotation” with Kuniyuki. Taken together, it’s a gorgeous, twilight aesthetic that hits notes of sorrow, longing and contemplation.

Nominally a house album, Midtown flirts with the dance floor only on a few songs, though it’s quite satisfying each time it does. “Midtown 120 Blues” is simple and effective, colored by two massive piano chords that decay slowly, as alacrative percussion carves out the groove. Joined by pulverizing sub-bass, depth-plumbing bass notes and a disembodied diva’s single-word refrain, the track’s subtle tweaks keep it continuously compelling. “Grand Central, Pt. I (Deep Into The Bowel Of House)” and “House Music Is A Controllable Desire You Can Own” have fuller sounds and rest at the dance floor’s edge. Thick with sub-bass and gently modulating pads, Thaemlitz’s use of limber bass tones, catchy little progressions and endlessly refined percussion patterns draw listeners through their bountiful lengths.

Other tracks like “Brenda’s $20 Dilemma” and “Grand Central, Pt. II (72 Hrs. By Rail From Missouri)” have the hallmarks of house but are content with ambience, blanketing listeners in sublime pads marbled with wandering synth melodies and sampled vocals. The album’s most emotionally evocative song, “Ball’r (Madonna-Free Zone),” is also its best, layering drag queens’ playful leering atop interwoven melodies undulating in and out of focus. Mournful yet tinged with hints of past cheer, it’s a candid reflection of the vibe Thaemlitz misses. Even if the listener doesn’t yearn for the same things, the concepts, mood and slowly unfolding chapters of Midtown 120 Blues create an atmosphere ripe for reflection on people and places which no longer exist as they once did.

Chicago, we’ll bring the music if you bring the dance. James Kartsaklis, Thunderous Olympian and LWE editor-in-chief, Steve Mizek, will be rocking our own Polish paradise, Cafe Lura (3184 N Milwaukee), this Thursday from 9pm until 2am. It’s only $5 to get in; $5 Redbull/vodkas, $4 Okocim bottles and $3 domestic biers. Hope to see you there!

[Phil e]

Michel Baumann has had a good 2008, with his Soulphiction album Do You Overstand as one of 2008′s quiet achievers, and a few great Jackmate singles. On “Malawi Dub” he’s got the architecture of the track just right. This one builds effortlessly from its humble beginnings, where hands slap against bongos, before the four to the floor pounds its foot into the ground, claps ignite the air like firecrackers, and a cowbell spins its way across the stereo spectrum. It reaches its head of steam when the hand percussion moves from soloist to orchestra, while halatial drones spin in the air, and hi-hats ring out across the skyline. The percussive workout that kicks in at around the three-and-a-half minute mark has the same off-kilter feel as Villalobos’ wandering jams, but Baumann keeps it focused and brief — it’s out of earshot within ninety seconds as he’s onto the next thing. Despite this, “Malawi Dub” doesn’t feel busy or forced; rather it’s taut and essential –- there’s nothing flashy or extraneous here.

“In Flux” opens with a procession of spectral bells, which reminds me of second-wave Detroit techno a la Jeff Mills’ more astral projections, but it’s brought down to earth by a seesawing two-chord vamp on what sounds like a harmonium or sruti box. That kind of relative incongruity is what sometimes makes Baumann’s tracks -– he can slot together the unexpected so both components feel completely logical next to each other. I also like how “In Flux” sounds both oceans-deep and feather-light at the same time. Mournful but not navel-gazing, “In Flux” is one of Baumann’s more beautiful productions. “S…..Out” begins with a somber melody worthy of Lawrence and continues with similar reserve. Ever-ascending motifs drift by as a triangle marks out a spine-tingling pattern, Baumann stretches jazz keys across the track’s instigating rhythm, striking notes as though he has no plan or process, just feeling around for the right moment. It’s nice, though short, and a little inconsequential. The feeling here is of some good ideas not given enough time to truly develop, the flipside of the pace with which “Malawi Dub” shuttles through ideas.