When LWE started its podcast series back 2008 it was impossible to tell how the series would progress; but its basis was in providing our readers with quality music, not just the handouts of the biggest names we could find. Now that we’re about to reach our 100th regular podcast it seems safe to say we achieved this goal, pleasing and challenging listeners and occasionally landing a few big name podcasts as well. In celebration of our fast approaching 100th exclusive podcast, LWE’s staff has taken a look back at the first 99 and showcased some of our favorites so far. What’s more, we’ve made all of the podcasts featured here available for download for one more week, so you can grab the archived mixes one more time. Because of the limits of the article we couldn’t possibly cover all of our favorite mixes, so we look forward to discussing your favorites in the comments as well.

LWE Podcast 01: Terrence Dixon
For me, Little White Earbuds’ first trip into the now-overfished seas of podcasting remains one of this site’s most memorable. Appearing at a time when “raw” and “Detroit” emerged as critical buzzwords in electronic music journalism, Terrence Dixon presented a spin on midwest retro that wasn’t dogmatic, but doggedly individual. Lo-fi and often abrasive, this tough, edgy mix sprawls from timeless cosmic techno to date-stamped acid house (see D-Mob’s “We Call It Acieed”). Uniting the selections is a snarling machine funk that mirrors Dixon’s own often-aggressive production work. Befitting an artist tipped by Clone as “maybe the last real Detroit techno innovator,” and whose track “Rush Hour” inspired the name of one of dance music’s most crucial institutions, Dixon’s LWE mix didn’t sound at all rote or trendy then and, even though melanges of prickly house and flickering techno are a dime a dozen today, this mix throws quite a few punches that still surprise. [Chris Burkhalter]

LWE Podcast 05: Tama Sumo
When LWE launched its podcast series, Tama Sumo was one of the first people I approached about doing a mix. Having seen her play the Panorama Bar garden not long before, I knew she was an ideal candidate for the task. But even that preview couldn’t prepare me for the mix she turned in. Weaving between multiple eras of house, silky deep joints (Agnes’ remix of “L’Aurora”) and more banging tech turns (Kerri Chandler’s “Hexadecimal”), Chicago jack tracks (DJ Funk’s “House The Groove”) and new wave torch songs (the “Innovative Mix” of Dee D. Jackson’s “Automatic Lover”), Podcast 05 is a thrilling ride that hits all the pleasure centers. For my money it’s an even better mix than her Panorama Bar 02 CD, even if the mixing is not machine tight. It’s one I’ve played when getting ready for parties, when I need cheering up, and when I’m just craving a reliable listen — because it’s just as fresh and enjoyable today as when it first hit my inbox. Tama Sumo quickly set the bar for LWE’s Podcast series as high as it could go, a benchmark only our best mixes since have been able to touch.
[Steve Mizek]

LWE Podcast 29: Black Jazz Consortium
“I woke up out of a deep sleep and started mixing out of a pile of records.” This is how Fred Peterkin begins to describe the recording of LWE’s 29th mix, and given his role as one of contemporary deep house’s foremost authorities it’s as fitting a situation as any. While deepness for deepness’ sake can seem to come out of one’s ears after awhile, with Fred it’s a different story all together. This mix is deep but never stagnant, slowly emerging out of REM cycles and perfectly escalating energy over its two hour runtime. The inclusion of movie quotes put it over the edge, turning an excellent mix into something truly special: a mix that stays with you past subsequent mixes and long after the unreleased material has been released. The era between its release in 2009 and now has seen house music become increasingly focused back to its roots (both geographically and temporally), and while Fred holds high the traditions of New York house, he makes pushing music forward a priority. Fred has only improved as a DJ since this mix emerged (indeed, his recent set at the Bunker remains a very bright highlight of the year so far), but I keep coming back to LWE’s 29th podcast and suspect that I will continue to for years to come. [Chris Miller]

LWE Podcast 42: Anthony “Shake” Shakir
For his fans, Shake just has the Midas touch. His mixes distill the same unstable, incandescent energy that inhabits each component in his own productions. How does Shake pull this off time and again? Within the last ten or twelve years, during which the dominant clubland aesthetics have called for mixes to have fabric-style edgeless polish, or Panorama Bar-esque unassuming functionalism, Shake has stuck to his guns. He revels in what can be created by jamming two partially compatible tracks together in a brightly kinetic collision. LWE 42 furnishes several good examples: exuberant mixing forces the bleeps and other midrange elements of the first three tracks to talk to one another – even though the frayed textures created when some of the other components combine would have dissuaded a DJ more obsessed with showman-like precision from hurtling them together. Perhaps even more importantly, Shake, like few others, creates mixes that work as a whole. Peven Everett’s “All The Time” is not a track I would reach for as a DJ, or even one for which I might muster much enthusiasm if it landed in my in-tray for review; and yet as the giddy counterpoint to the murkily psychological fare that entangles it on both sides in Shake’s mix, it works great. It’s these ecstatic moments that elevate Shake head and shoulders above the fray, and the fact that LWE 42 wonderfully conveys the rare (as hen’s teeth!) mix of physicality and narrative sensibility needed to create such moments makes it one of my favorites in the series. [Colin Shields]

LWE Podcast 59: John Roberts
Casual listeners to John Roberts’ debut album Glass Eights might have been surprised to hear the lascivious come-ons of KC Flight’s “Summer Madness.” But beneath the buttoned-up, wallflower appearance of Roberts’ own music is an house badass just dying to flex his muscles. The point is proved by his LWE mix which ploughs a furrow I’d like to christen “sensitive thug”: the aforementioned “Sex For Daze” mix rubs up against Robert Owens wittering on about how he’ll be your friend, while “Jack Your Big Booty” is frottaged by the DJ’s own elegant composition “Porcelain.” By the time Italo tearjerker “On and On” brings the mix to a close, one realises that it is in fact merely an extension of Roberts’ own perfect synthesis of rough-house drums and Dial aesthetics: this is what happens when thugs cry. [Peder Clark]

LWE Podcast 62: DJ Qu
While we’ve written countless words on this site about DJ Qu’s inimitable production style, we tend to gloss over the fact that DJing is no small part of what this guy does. And his Little White Earbuds podcast proved beyond all reasonable doubt that the front end of Ramon Lisandro Quezada’s production alias is no false signifier. Dude can mix, but what we got here was a good deal more interesting: where plenty of other producer-DJs let their club sets bolster their 12″ output, Qu’s beats on our 62nd podcast sound very much in the service of his obsessions as a house-head. Those beats — then-exclusives which would go on to assume highlight status on Qu’s long-in-the-works Gymnastics album — mostly rub shoulders with a tightly interconnected circle of like-minded producers, from globetrotters like Jus-Ed and Nina Kraviz to unsung Exchange Place heroes Joey Anderson and Nicuri. But rather than simply restate Underground Quality, this podcast traveled truly recast these now-familiar sounds: New York house found its dark side, and Qu’s signature swirling rhythms (to borrow his words, “Thump and Vibe”) emerged from their cocoons as the stuff of anthems. [Jordan Rothlein]

LWE Podcast 63: Silent Servant vs DVS1
I’ve been listening to techno for over twenty years; my musical education and explorations included huge doses of the purist Detroit and German variety, so it has always held a special place in my heart and ears. I frequently used to listen to a tape of Jeff Mills live at Liquid Room to lull myself to sleep in my mid teens and even though my tastes have mellowed slightly from the hard-as-nails techno I used to prefer, I love hearing techno played properly. Silent Servant and DVS1 bring all the right ingredients to this mix that make techno such a joy to listen to. The mixing is tight, the tracks sound both timeless and futuristic (classic techno like this could have been made any time in the last 15-20 years and still sound like it’s fresh out the box), and there is a raw, tribalistic energy conveyed that keeps things moving and interesting. I love how Silent Servant mixes up the old and new, introducing old cuts to new ears and vice versa, while DVS1 goes mostly for cold, steely look at more recent releases. To me this epitomizes late night, heads down techno and it’s my favorite in our series. [Per Bojsen-Moller]

LWE Podcast 70: Elgato
I’m not sure what it means that my favorite mix in the podcast series is one composed entirely of old tracks; a determinedly “retro” mix seems the kind of musical dessert that shouldn’t be held above perhaps more “adventurous” endeavors. But really, fuck it. Just listen to this mix. Maybe it’s the novelty of a podcast by one of 2010′s most audacious and universally acclaimed new kids on the block making deeply experimental house music turning out to be an orthodox set of old garage from both sides of the Atlantic. Maybe it’s the fact that the selection is unparalleled, mixing both realms of garageland into one cohesive singularity that feels as deeply, intrinsically UK as it worships at the altar of classic American house. Maybe it’s because it capitalized on what seemed like a looming trend of incorporating house and classic garage into bass music, predicting what would soon become the overarching theme of 2011. Maybe it’s… fuck it. Just listen to this mix. [Andrew Ryce]

LWE Podcast 72: Aroy Dee
Too often when a DJ uses their podcast to spotlight their own label/productions, it distracts from what could be a satisfying mix. And although Steven Brunsmann aka Aroy Dee’s podcast from early this year starts and ends with his own R-A-G trio and features several other M>O>S recordings, it never feels like he’s doing listeners a disservice. Brunsmann’s podcast, taken from a Panorama Bar DJ set late last year, offers a stirring journey through Chicago house and Detroit techno alongside equally significant modern productions. Pulling out lesser known older tracks from The H-Men, MD III and Reel by Real, he slips in and out of textured, moody techno from the likes of Soulomon, Paul Bennett and even the gloriously off-kilter “Bowls” by Caribou. Even when he groups two unreleased (at the time of publishing) tracks from M>O>S together, D’Marc Cantu’s “Set Free” and Brunsmann’s own “Beauty,” the quality of the tracks dispel thoughts that their placement is merely a sales pitch. This podcast is just what it is, a snapshot of Brunsmann’s DJing on one killer night. [Kuri Kondrak]

LWE Podcast 76: Anton Zap
I’ve been through probably 10 to 20 variations on “buses at dusk” trying to describe this Anton Zap podcast. That’s basically the wave it’s on. The Russian producer put together a bunch of unreleased (at the time, anyway) material from his Ethereal Sound label and a few other odds and ends, but the end result is a lot less about singular tracks than fluid, drifting atmosphere. It’s casually engaging but never boring, just subtly switching moods and shades — the BPMs are steady, there are lots of soothing pads — it’s like some kind of deep blue motor. Maybe try thinking of a ride down a post-twilight boulevard: blocks of muted light in apartment windows, closed businesses where the front is neon-lit and then fades off into blackness in the back, faceless people doing that downcast end-of-the-day trudge. It’s one of our moodier, more evocative editions. [Steve Kerr]

01. Jerzzey Boy, “Like A”
[My Love Is Underground] (buy)
With retro house styles so completely en vogue, it makes sense that labels are beginning to combine new, classically influenced releases with re-releases of hard to find records. My Love Is Underground, the Paris-based imprint owned by Jeremy Underground, takes it a step further: of its four releases so far, two seem to contain newly released tracks that date from the fetishized early/mid-90′s. Their third was by Jerzzey Boy, the duo of Curtis Edwards and George Lockett Jr. whose last record together dates back to 1994. The clear highlight of their Lost Cuts Pt.1 is “Like A,” a short and vivacious house track that’s clearly indebted to Journey With the Lonely-era Lil Louis. Its staccato organ chords and bass line hit the same pleasure centers, and Keva Holman’s confident vocals command the same level of respect as Lil Louis collaborator Joi Cardwell. It seems nearly impossible not to get caught up in the catchy refrain or the grin-inducing melodies throughout. Hats off to Jeremy for rescuing this excellent lost material; we look forward to what he and his crew unearth next.

02. Recondite, “Robur” [Plangent] (buy)
It’s become something of a familiar story: a hand-stamped white label arrives in stores with barely any information about the label or artist and wins the hearts and cash of discerning listeners. But like the best records to fit into this mold, it’s the music rather than the buzz that has shoppers adding Plangent#001 by Recondite to their piles. It’s altogether a splendid release, but “Robur” at A2 seems to be the standout. While bound together by sturdy 808 percussion, “Robur” is a delicate tune whose contemplative synth leads intermingle like curls of smoke rising from the morning’s first cigarette. The combination is quite affecting — just enough momentum to stir the dance floor’s first entrants with more melodic nuance than found in some whole DJ sets. Fans of Kassem Mosse, RNDM and Lawrence should check out this one before it vanishes from shops’ stock.

03. Roman Flügel, “Iron Curtain”
[Live At Robert Johnson] (buy)
There aren’t too many sonic signatures that tie-together Roman Flügel’s lengthy and varied back catalog; even his beloved 303 only shows up from time to time. Yet it’s fair to say the broad majority of Flügel’s work is endearingly lighthearted, and using his tracks in a set can act a reminder that dance music isn’t serious business and can be used to facilitate fun. He follows his Simon LeBon single for Live At Robert Johnson (one of the most killingest labels currently in operation) with the Desperate Housemen EP for the imprint, a cheeky record whose best moment, “Iron Curtin,” is as sticky in the mind as chewed gum is in hair. Its plush pads and complimentary synth strings, taken alongside syncopated house percussion, recall the exalted air of 90′s deep-house. So far so good, but what sets the tune off is the slippery synth lead which scrambles between notes like puppy on hardwood floors — eager and excited but barely able to control its enthusiasm or feet. The result is sure to bring a smile to dancers’ faces as they wiggle along. It looks like Roman Flügel’s third act continues to be as compelling and charismatic as parts one and two.

04. Terrence Dixon, “City Nights” [Thema] (buy)
If an artist’s popularity was commensurate to their talent, Terrence Dixon would be as well known as any of the Detroit producers adored by the dance music world. His music is otherworldly and familiar at once, containing many of the same ingredients as his peers but arranged in such unexpected ways that it can take a few spins before their structures click with what we come to expect. For his first release of 2011, Dixon teamed up with Brooklyn’s Thema imprint for a five track EP that showcases some of his more accessible material as well as his characteristically complex side. Like many of his best tracks, lead track “City Nights” fits together long, funky loops filigreed with jazzy tones and intervals and is bolted together with vibrating slap bass cables. Although it’s a straight 4×4, the frantically intricate drumwork leaves it feeling open to interpretation and various styles of DJing. The highlight, however, is when the strings detach from their high perch to swoon from side to side, providing the sensation of the whole track melting. Tunes like “City Nights” make us glad that labels keep giving Dixon a platform for his sui generis style of techno and give us hope that larger audiences will follow.

05. Vakula, “Kiev” [Achipel] (buy)
Mikhaylo Vityk, the producer better known as Vakula, has enamored himself to the deep house scene with great alacrity. In his two year career, the Ukrainian talent has racked up releases on top shelf labels such as Uzuri, 3rd Strike Records, Quintessentials, Firecracker Recordings, and most recently Anton Zap’s Ethereal Sound imprint. Yet it’s a largely overlooked release for Archipel which recently caught our attention and helped explain his allure. What he does so well, showcased best by the track “Kiev,” is to infuse familiar deep house motifs with empyrean synth lines that elevate the earthy elements. The funky bass line of “Kiev” seems to be swimming in a current of stardust as persistent hi-hats and staggered snare hits give the tune shape. It’s the kind of track you want to hear while watching the clouds float by, preferably while shaking it at the water’s edge.

06. Julius Steinhoff, “Mischief Of One Kind And Another” [Geography Records] (buy)
07. Peverelist, “Dance Til The Police Come”
[Hessle Audio] (buy)
08. Prostitune, “NJ Turnpike”
[Just Another Beat] (buy)
09. Andre Lodemann, “Your Choice”
[Room With A View] (buy)
10. Leonid Nevermind, “Thymus Stimulator”
[Nowar] (buy)

Staff Charts:

Steve Kerr
01. Old Apparatus, “Untitled B” [Deep Medi Musik]
02. Andy Stott, “Dark Details” [Modern Love]
03. Grouper, “Alien Observer” [Yellow Electric]
04. Shifted, “Reach” (Szare Remix) [Syndrome Z]
05. Invisible Conga People, “Can’t Feel My Knees” [DFA]
06. Blondes, “Lover” [Rvng Intl]
07. Marcellus Pittman, “The Mad Underdog” [Seventh Sign Records]
08. Gesloten Cirkel, “Yamagic” [Moustache Records]
09. Sneaker, “You Think You Think” [Uncanny Valley]
10. Lone, “Blossom Quarter” [R&S Records]

Anton Kipfel
01. Julius Steinhoff, “Mischief Of One Kind And Another”
[Geography Records]
02. Dinky, “Polvo” [Ostgut Ton]
03. Hitsafe, “Let The Acid Out” (Tin Man Remix) [Shaddock Records]
04. Burial, “Stolen Dog” [Hyperdub]
05. Reggie Dokes, “Haiti” [Royal Oak]
06. Kenton Slash Demon, “Daemon” [Tartelet Records]
07. WK7, “Higher Power” (Hardcore PCK Mix) [Power House]
08. The Parallel, “Analogue City” [Kosmisch]
09. Unity Love Vibe, “Doom Loop” [Station 5 Records]
10. Art Department, “What Does It Sound Like?” [Crosstown Rebels]

Chris Miller
01. Andy Stott, “Excecution” [Modern Love]
02. DJ Qu, “Get Sum” [Strength Music]
03. Midland, “Through Motion” [Aus Music]
04. tobias., “Girts” [Ostgut Ton]
05. Pearson Sound, “Deep Inside” [Night Slugs]
06. Pangaea, “Run Out” [Hessle Audio]
07. Dresvn, “Woodlandscene A2″ [Acido Records]
08. Versalife, “Solenoids of Insomnia” [Clone West Coast Series]
09. Donato Dozzy, “In Bed” (Tin Man Remix) [Absurd Recordings]
10. Steffi, “Sadness” [Ostgut Ton]

Keith Pishnery
01. Kahn, “Like We Used To” [Punch Drunk]
02. 13&God, “Armored Scarves” [Anticon]
03. Wiley, “Numbers in Action” [Big Dada]
04. Illum Sphere, “Dreamstelin” [Tectonic]
05. Mexicans With Guns, “Highway To Hell” [Innovative Leisure]
06. Kode9 & Spaceape, “Otherman” [Hyperdub]
07. Save Slaves, “Revolver Juggling” [Nihon Kizuna]
08. Burial, “Stolen Dog” [Hyperdub]
09. Mokira, “Axis Audio” [Kontra-Musik]
10. Groundislava, “Animal” [Friends of Friends]

Andrew Ryce
01. Pittsburgh Track Authority, “Vertical Impact” [Uzuri]
02. Andre Lodemann, “Your Choice” [Room With A View]
03. Andy Mac, “Everytime” [Punch Drunk]
04. Steffi, “Sadness” [Ostgut Ton]
05. Machinedrum, “Fantastix” [Planet Mu]
06. Andy Stott, “North To South” [Modern Love]
07. Duijn & Douglas, “Clap Voor Je Backingvocals” [Feelharmonic]
08. Monolithium, “Swag Equity” [Error Broadcast]
09. Redinho, “Edge Off” [Numbers]
10. Miyoo, “Biogram” (West Norwood Cassette Library Remix)
[West Norwood Cassette Library]

[Meakusma]

Dynamics. Unless you spent your youth taking piano lessons, you might have to consult Wikipedia to know what I’m talking about. Thanks to excruciating overuse of compression and the never-ending quest for loudness in mastering, it’s the veritable endangered species of music expression in recorded music these days. (Read Nick Southall’s treatise on the subject on the late, great Stylus website and weep.) In dance music, tracks exhibit variations in volume so rarely that I hardly give it any thought anymore. If I made a fuss every time a track pumped it out at the same volume for six or seven minutes, I’d be making a hell of a lot of fuss.

So when I got my hands on Room 310, veteran Detroit new-waver Terrence Dixon’s new 12″ for Belgium’s fledgling Meakusma label, its dynamics absolutely set it apart. The two new Dixon productions on the A-side, the title track and “Who Is That,” are both excellently crafted slices of Detroit minimal techno in the tradition of Robert Hood and Jeff Mills. But Dixon’s synthetic bells, nauseous bass lines, and herky-jerky rhythms form a whole more distinctive than the sum of its parts, in large part due to the track’s wonderful use of dynamics. The effect is perhaps more apparent on the B-side, which Dixon and Meakusma have turned over to the Upperground Orchestra. The Morphine-affiliated Italian electronic jazz combo doesn’t so much remix “Room 310″ as riff on it, and the result is pretty thrilling. Though the side technically splits into two remixes, the “Supreme Present Mix” and “Sci Fi Mix,” the former flows right into the other to form one ultimately epic piece. Moving from quiet rumblings featuring Dixon’s narration from the original to a full-band, full-volume free-for-all, the suite feels like an entire night of techno energy distilled into fifteen minutes. While Dixon and the Upperground Orchestra both deserve credit for savvy musicianship, Dubplates & Mastering’s Rashad Becker should get props as well for maintaining the subtleties of both sides’ dynamic ranges. It’s one of the most musical 12″s I’ve heard in a minute. Hopefully Terrence Dixon’s techno peers are listening.

LWE Podcast 01: Terrence Dixon

After nearly a decade and a half of producing and DJing, Detroit native Terrence Dixon seems to constantly redefine what it means to be at the top of his game. I have to admit, though, I wasn’t aware of Dixon until I found last year’s stunning Train of Thought album on Yore Records. His choice of gnarled, densely textured loops was an unconventional delight which certainly stood out from all other albums, as it subtly threaded together a swath of otherwise incongruous sounds into floor-pounding and mind-warping techno tracks. Later I found out he’s been wowing fans since the mid 90′s, with releases on Utensil Records, Tresor and Background. Dixon was kind enough to briefly chat with me and lend Little White Earbuds a recent DJ set of his. It’s a bit low-fi and unfortunately I don’t have a tracklisting, but if you’re feeling cavalier, feel free to trainspot in the comments.

Check out a short interview with Mr. Dixon after the jump.

How did you get your start in producing? Do you have a day job as well?

Terrence Dixon: I worked at different fast food places in the early 90′s, started producing acid over a friends house.

Who are some of your biggest musical influences? What was your first techno/house record?

Some of my biggest music influences are Teddy Pendergrass, The O’Jays, Mantronix and Jimi Hendrix. The first record I bought was a Mike Ink hard acid record.

What gear do you make your compositions with?

Alexis Quadrasynth, MC 303, Alexis MMT-8, Soundforge and Acid.

When working on music, what feelings are you trying to invoke in listeners? What are you trying to accomplish with your tunes?

My music comes from my surroundings and the way my life is going at the time; it’s an outlet for me that I’m glad people enjoy.

What can we expect from you in 2008?

More music from the heart and mind.