Search:the club years

- Turn Me On' by Jay W. McGee is the third release in a series of sought after boogie, disco and modern soul re-issues on Légère Recordings. The original 12inch vinyl single appeared on the tiny Canadian Indie label Love Productions in 1980 and is immensely hard to find these days.

- Turn Me On' is an unusual production for its time, grooving along unbelievably deep in a spartanic arrangement, and fuelled by vocals which are not too far away from Sylvester's iconic style of mixing soul, disco, funk and jazz.


Jay W. McGee has a strong opinion about disco music: - When disco came out, it had its own way of reaching people's hearts too. Being in a club, you know, it's escapism, like with soul music. Soul is addressing everyday life problems, disco is about how to forget and enjoy yourself. They each have their own unique place. I saw people railing on doing disco because they didn't understand the seriousness of it,' Jay W. McGee explains about - Turn Me On' when he officially commissioned this re-release: - The discrimination of disco was in reality a discrimination against black music.'

- Your Love', the flipside of this 12inch single, is an exciting ballad on the B-side and a surprise in itself. Both tracks feature a great combination of talents. Wayne Jackson, the trumpet player on - Turn Me On', played on Rick James' album 'Bustin' Out On L Seven', in the late Seventies. Glenn Johanson was the engineer on - Your Love'. He became Eddy Grant's house engineer at his studio in Barbados right after he mixed this tune. But there is also a little drama in the story. When Jay W. McGee returned to the studio where he recorded, "Turn Me On" he found out that the original version of - Turn Me On' was erased by another technician: - Everybody said it could have been a hit, and maybe the guy did it on purpose.' Nevertheless he recorded the song again with a now different arrangement and instrumentation. Maybe that is the reason why the production is so unique and also so different to - Your Love'.

Jay W. McGee could have been a solo artist on Philadelphia International Records, back in 1969, when he met Leon Huff of Gamble & Huff, in Philly for an audition, just before they recorded - Me And Mrs. Jones', - Bad Luck' and - Backstabbers' with Billy Paul, Harold Melvin and The O'Jays. They offered him a contract, but he refused, because he came with his whole group from Flint, Michigan and they wanted to be signed collectively.

Jay W. McGee kept just one of the original 12inches in his home: - Both songs were a profession of love to my wife. We are now married for 34 years.' Now if this ain't love, we don't know....'

We call them the rat pack of our beat scene. With all diversity in sound, the three producers are unified in their love for dope beats and high-proof drinks, both catered and consumed with style and expertise.

Suff Daddy, the globetrotting gin connoisseur and minimoog player with domiciles in Berlin, Düsseldorf and Sydney. He has released three solo albums and has worked with artists like Miles Bonny, Fleur Earth, Ta-ku and Elzhi. After a one year stint in Sydney, he returned to Berlin this spring.

Brenk Sinatra, the Wien-Kaisermühlen homeboy, Westcoast rap fanatic and producer of the forthcoming MC Eiht album. Last year Brenk released the critically acclaimed S3 album together with US singer Miles Bonny and has laced beats for an armada of MCs from both sides of the Atlantic.

And last but not least Dexter, the Stuttgart based trip maker and platinum producer with a day job as a pediatrician. This June Dexter released his second solo-album 'The Trip' a homage to the psychedelic rock era and one of the most innovative and genre bending hip-hop albums of 2013.

All three first met at the Hi-Hat Club, the producer series that we started a couple of years ago with the goal to push and celebrate the art of beat making. With their respective volumes 'Suff Draft' (Suff Daddy), 'The Jazz Files' (Dexter) and 'Chop Shop' (Brenk Sinatra) each of the guys put the instrumental hip-hop thing on a new and different level. None of their beats need a MC to be complete, they are full songs in their own right.

The official birth date of the Betty Ford Boys was the 2012 Beat BBQ in Cologne where Dexter, Suff and Brenk performed together for the first time. Right after the now legendary gig, that was ended by police forces Suff Daddy left for Sydney so that most the recordings for the Betty Ford Boys debut album took place in the cloud. Right after his return to Berlin, the Boys jumped on the bus and played their first club tour which finished with a gig at the Splash Festival.

On August 30th, the Betty Ford Boys release their first album 'Leaders Of The Brew School' on Melting Pot Music. The record combines the best of three worlds and has a surprisingly chilled Westcoast vibe. It's perfect summer music, it's edgy and relaxed at the same time and keeps you thirsty for more ....

April 2013 sees the release of Norwegian Disco Viking Rune Linbaek's latest long player, on his Drum Island label

Its his first album since the 2000 release (Sondag) on Paper Recordings RePap offshoot

Last year's single 'Wonder' feat Kurt Maloo on the label was a day one sell out here at All Ears and marked a significant maturing of Rune's trademark sound.
The influence of Norway on the world's forward thinking Disco scene & beyond is more than evident, with countrymen like Todd Terje, Prins Thomas and Hans Peter Lindstrom
all leading the charge for years now. The creative cauldron of the infamous 'club in a public toilet' Skansen has much to answer for !

Krasava is a very much vocal led project, with a cast of featured vocalists which includes Norwegian popstar Anneli Drecker alongside recent collaborator Øyvind Blikstad.
The album is steeped in Norwegian folklore, visually and musically and the gentle lilt of the Norse/Balearic sound, sits comfortably alongside more Cosmic flavours, Rock and beautifully crafted pop.

Tigersushi surprise us and drop a new 12" from label boss, Joakim... 2 Gloriously Produced Tracks, As Usual...!
Almost 2 years have passed since Joakim released Nothing Gold. Not that he's been lazy. Those 2 years have probably been the busiest for the tall Musician/producer/DJ/label manager who produced numerous bands in his Fountain Studio in Paris (Zombie Zombie, Montevideo, Alba Lua, Acid Washed and more...). Joakim also did a few remixes (Aeroplane, Charlotte Gainsbourg, Lescop, Arsenal, Renaissance Man...) ans recorded a collaboration EP with Kindness that was the debut release on his new label Crowdspacer. Not to mention the constant touring, running Tigersushi records and a move from Paris to New York city!

Since Joakim has 4 hands, he also managed to start recording some material for a new album between 2 recording sessions and just before he had to move his studio out, he finished those 2 tracks : the slow, claustrophobic but hopeful « Heartbeats » and « Another Light » which brings that subtle typical melancholy to the clubs.

Now Joakim is setting up a mini home studio in his flat in NYC, somehow going back to his roots when he started making music at his parents house with a cheap keyboard more than 10 years ago. Usually in the music business, artists release a first single once the album is finished and start a promo campaign from there. But Joakim doesn't really understand the music business (don't tell anyone!), so he decided to release those 2 tracks without having any more finished material for his upcoming album nor an idea of what it will be like. In those times when everything is instant, he'd rather release new material leading to an album while the tracks are finished. Just like a work in progress you will witness an album taking shape before your ears.
This is a way to bypass the traditional rhythm of an album launch when everything needs to be done and ready months before the actual release, which usually results in the author being already bored and working on something else when the music comes out.

Brodanse´s 'Danse Club Records' returns with another 90`s New Jersey gem reworked for 2013 with remix duties this time going to Just Be, Lula Circus & Chubby Dubz ... Danse Club Records, the label started by DJ/production sibling duo Brodanse has made a sterling start so far with releases of classic 90`s US house cuts remixed by the likes of Matt Tolfrey, Oliver $, Moodymanc & Brodanse themselves.

The reaction has been outstanding at a time where there is an obvious embracing of all things nineties and DJs such as Danny Tenaglia, Maxxi Soundsytem, Seth Troxler, Huxley & Dusky have been queuing up to lend their backing. For their latest release Danse Club look once again to New Jerseys historic shores, this time picking up an old record from US soul house duo The Burrell Brothers and drafting in three hot production acts to rework this much loved tune.
To start the package we have the original "club dub" version, giving an insight into the records history with it`s mid nineties feel and production still standing up wonderfully.

The first of the remixes sees Crosstown Rebels and Get Physical artist Just Be AKA Matthew Bushwaka deliver his"Insomniac mix",
a bumping slice of underground house music that marries a bass driven groove, organic percussion and subtle melodic elements with snippets of the vocal to supreme effect.

Next up we have Italian production duo Lula Circus whose releases for the likes of Culprit and Noir have been creating quite a stir. Here they deliver a brilliant rework of "Non Stop" in the shape of a deep old school house workout that makes the most of the soulful vocals with its simplistic, hypnotic backing. With its timeless quality, this mix is certain to be mainstay in DJ boxes for months and years to come.

The penultimate version sees the excellent Chubby Dubz offer up an outstanding mix that cuts and pastes the original parts in a raw house style. Closing the package there is a bonus dub of Just Be`s Insomniac mix that rounds things off nicely. This is another winning package from the Danse-Club label and with original artist material from Brodanse in the pipeline alongside further remix packages there is much to look forward to.

Kavinsky is back with a first and long-awaited album, OutRun, available on February 25th. But before that, here is the first single, ProtoVision!

Red Sky Mix feat. STS (vinyl exclusive)
It was no easy job to tackle this epic instrumental. When he heard Sugar Tongue Slim's version of Nightcall last summer, Kavinsky knew he had found the man who could turn Protovision into gold. After burning up the underground rap scene for several years, STS is now one of the fastest rising artists around. He gave a big blow with this one and literally took Protovision to another dimension.

Boys Noize remix
Berlin's notorious producer put his hands on Protovision and turned it in into a nervous and elegant club hit. Get ready to rave on that sweaty bass and dark beat. 'If it's too loud, you're too old', they said

Blood Orange remix
Between producing tomorrow's pop talents (Solange, Sky Ferreira, Theophilus London) and working on his solo project Blood Orange, England's talent of note Devonté Hynes took the time to add his very own touch to Kavinsky's new release. Giving a fresh and girly feel to the original track, he delightfully transformed it into a groovy pop ballad.

Sébastien Tellier Version (vinyl exclusive)
Taste and simplicity is what it took to Tellier to create this version of Protovision ; highlighting hypnotic strings and heroic guitars, the French maestro offered a timeless reinterpetation of the original.

Ed Banger proudly presents their new signing Boston Bun, AKA ThibaudNoyer.. A 25 year old producer and DJ from Paris, Noyer spent his formative years in a series of rock bands before finally finding his way in the form of House Music. "It's my main influence - especially vocal House, anything between 120 and 125 bpm that talks about pleasure, love and desire..." and of course the all important "big warm bassline"

Noyer's displays a masterful touch on this his debut release - lead track 'Housecall' recalls the classic baseline arpeggio pulse of Mr Fingers, allied to the tough jacking drums of Green Velvet, and a moaning, imploring vocal. 'Closer' manages to up the sleaze quotient with a baseline so filthy it needs a good scrub, insistent grunts and shuffling perc, and 'Urname' rounds things out with blissed out pads, yearning vocals and skittering cowbells.

Everything started with his mixtape project entitled "LEAN HOUSE". The idea was to compile and mix some edits of his favourite house track of some of his favorite producers and DJs, in a chopped & screwed style. A couple of months after, his remix of Maelstrom's "HOUSEMUSIC" was released on Sound Pellegrino, and quickly defined the Boston Bun's aesthetic. "I build my music as I would build the atmosphere in a club. A club where you feel good, where you meet people, where something special happens. I try to recreate both the mood and the acoustic of this ideal place"

The Drifter, or Mark Flynn as he is known to his parents, is an up and coming Irish producer and singer living in Berlin. He grew up listening to all kinds of music, and after an adolescence of band projects, choirs and music groups, he got involved in the Dublin club scene, which spurred his love for electronic music and DJing. A move to Berlin inspired him to change his focus to production and suddenly his entire background started to piece itself together - the singing and songwriting of his early years and the musical influences from his DJing and constant digging for electronic music gems.
On top of lending his kaleidoscopic voice to productions of friends such as Erdbeerschnitzel, Good Guy Mikesh & Filburt, Worst Friends and Jacob Korn, Mark runs the clubnight 'Passion Beat' at Loftus Hall together with Mano Le Tough, an old buddy from his home town of Greystones. Both share a passion for deep, emotional and dark shimmering house music, and have together founded the label Maeve. The 'Lovers' EP is the first solo release by The Drifter. It comprises of three unique tracks where Mark proves that he is one of those rare electronic music gems himself, being equally gifted in singing and producing.

Special 12” featuring new versions of the track Fa, taken from the debut Fennesz solo album ‘Hotel Paral.lel’ (1997). 15 years after its initial release, Christian Fennesz gives this throbbing monster of a track a new seeing to, extending it and adding more of that magic he is so well known for. The album was always an exercise in exploring alternate means of hearing club based music. This new version carries that concept further.

This is backed by a cracking new mix by the ever productive Mark Fell, adding his unique beat structures, and even a MLK sample, which lends his contemporary rhythmic landscape a odd nostalgic twist.

This 12” can be seen as a warm up for the new Fennesz album, which is currently scheduled for 2013 release.

RAWAX IS PROUD TO WELCOME MR. K-ALEXI SHELBY TO THE FAMILY!
Mr. K Alexi Shelby
Like a moth drawn to a flame, there is something utterly infectious about the music of Mr.K Alexi Shelby, better known as K-Alexi one of the founding fathers of house music direct from his home city of Chicago. Since the late 1980s, he has pioneered the true house sound, leading to a DH and production career spanning over 20 years, including collaborations with artists ranging from The Pet Shop Boys to Derrick May and from Larry Heard and Felix da Housecat to Will Smith, as well as gigs across the globe.
An impressionable young teenager, Mr.K Alexi Shelby developed friendships with Frankie Knuckles and Ron Hardy whilst attending seminal venues like The Warehouse and The Music Box in the mid 1980s. Being here at this embryonic stage of dance music culture, there were no rules or precedents, so K Alexi drew on a rich musical heritage that had seen him grow up in the 70s and 80s listening to Stevie Wonder, Prince, Curtis Mayfield and David Huff. Those roots continue to influence his music to this day.
It was under the moniker Risque III that Essence Of A Dream was released in 1987, firmly establishing the name of Mr.K Alexi Shelby amongst the most prominent of all house producers at the time. Moreover, those early tracks are still recognized to be the quintessential Chicago house sound. The rumbling and dark bass, smooth strings, incredible percussion and the spoken word poetic and erotic lyrical flow became the trademark for classic Chicago house and the template for everything else that followed. To reiterate, there was no template before this. This was the beginning.
This initial success has lead to Mr.K Alexi Shelby working with the leading names across the electronic music world and beyond. Collaborations and remixes for Chicago peers like Mike Dunn, Mr. Lee and Marshall Jefferson merely served as the springboard for Alexi to work with the best in the electronic scene, from Derrick May to Paul Johnson ,Ron Trent Dave Angel to Felix ad House Kat. Furthermore, his talents have also lead to him working with The Pet Shop Boys and Will Smith.
On top of this, his tracks have appeared on compilations by artists varying from Laurent Garnier to DJ Hell, who used It's Me 2010 contribution to the Body Language series for Get Physical Music. Produced under the Club M.C.M. moniker, the 1991 EP It's Me/Club M.C.M. has been a frequent selection for compilations for 20 years and is rightly regarded as a true underground techno classic.

Jerome Pacman is a "french house hero". He started mixing in "rave" of 90 years in Paris and major European events such as Mayday in Berlin or Exogroove in Rimini. 20 years later, he is always present on the international club scene. The British magazine DJ Mag has defined it as "an intimate affair of deep, percussive minimal house and tech-funk Who Speaks about love for music." He signs his new single Courtoisie Rec. with remixes by Armand De Ganey aka Dj Armand and Dj Freddy & Michael Avannier.

Hochwertiges Digi-Pack des Debut-Album !!!


A solitary shed by a lake. Surrounded by woods coated in ice. It's the deepest winter and the Pentatones quartet finds itself in the deserted nature of the Mecklenburg-Vorpommern County. They are searching for sounds pulsating beyond instruments and machines. Inaudible Music this is, made sound by them only. By night the four move over the frosted lake, play the clarinet and put themselves in a chilly trance. Months later they will remember dimly these moments in the woods and cast them atmospherically into their album debut 'The Devil's Hand' with icy romance. Highly attentive to details, they have worked on it for 3 years. Since 2006 the Pentatones tinker with their tessellate electroacoustic sound, in whose center the voice of singer Delhia de France is floating. To friends of club music she might be known from her collabs with techno producers such as Marlow, Douglas Greed or Robag Whrume. With the Pentatones she combines her emotional timbre in various forms with the raw basslines by Hannes Waldschütz and the analog and electronic beats and samples by Julian Hetztel a.k.a. Le Schnigg. Albrecht Ziepert creates melodic moods on the keys, whose appeal one can hardly elude. Their kaleidoscopic arrangements dance between susceptibility and experi­ment. Enticing pop structures melt with crackling analog electronics - a mixture laid out to make dance at times, at times to chill. The ambiance of her compositions is gloomy, yet light-flooded in a certain way. It is most notably Delhias voice, which outshines everything, never standing still, meandering and spinning, opening up a new emotional space with every bre­ath. The computer with its infinite production possibilities is used in its function as another instrument. Together with the sampler it forms the center of action, processing everything, from voice to keys, which needs an artistic distancing effect. A contrabass is setting the pace at times, then again the brass accelerates the tracks highly emotively. In stylistic regards their compositions are never predictable. A touch of organic jazz here, a subtle hip-hop allusion there, accompanied by a moving club rhythm structure and Delhias captivating voice, which sings, then talks, and whispers in the next moment.
It's not only the infinite world of sound, which inspires them to their adventurously twisted compositions. For all members being equally active in the visual field, art plays an impor­tant role in the act of creating and in the overall concept of the Pentatones. This is being reflected in their life shows, acknowledged with much applause on festivals like 'Sonne, Mond und Sterne', the 'Fusion Festival' or 'Ars Electronica'. When they sample themselves during their concerts, modify their sound in real time and vividly interpret their songs, Delhia dances audaciously in extravagant, self-designed costumes in haughty reserve and effuses eccentric pop magic. Sometimes she takes the megaphone and by hereby altering her voice, she infuses her music with another exotic tone. With their self-produced videos the Leipzig residents by choice create an artistic universe, which stages the dramatic lyrics of the lead singer in a sublime way. After all they see themselves as an artificial band, operating beyond the conventional patterns of presentation, bypassing intuitively and creatively common pop stereotypes. Twisted-Pop which gets straight under your skin, without ever grooving stream­lined. You can dance to it, lose yourself in it or step into new worlds. There is only one thing difficult to deal with after you enjoyed 'The Devil's Hand' and that's to release yourself from its overwhelming emotional impact.

freshly repressed!
Leisure System, the collective, label and famed Berghain club night of four years standing, is back with their third release from co-founder and resident, Sam Barker. Known for its genre-defiant lineups, Leisure System's quarterly residency has consistently brought together artists with varying styles. Flying Lotus, Autechre, Afrika Hitech, Jackmaster, Surgeon, Jimmy Edgar, Blawan, 808 State, Dopplereffekt, Clark, Machinedrum, Surgeon, Venetian Snares, Objekt and Egyptian Lover have all graced the decks, showing off the collective's commitment to the exploration of new and experimental sounds in EDM. The development of the label, and now this release from Barker, is no exception. After discovering computers and raves in the late '90s, Barker began making tracks at age 13, building up a sizable collection of vintage analogue synths, paving the way for his future solo work and collaborations with artists like Tim Exile, Clark, Shitmat, Scotch Egg, The Field, Leafcutter John and Jimmy Edgar. Shortly after his 2007 move to Berlin, Barker began collaborating with fellow Berghain resident nd_baumecker, resulting in their ongoing project Barker & Baumecker. Their first EP 'Candyflip', was released on Ostgut Ton in 2010, followed up by a live show tour throughout Europe. The duo is currently readying their second EP and have a long player due out in August 2012. For this new solo EP, mastered by electronic music legend Pole, Barker presents a creative three-track lesson in diversity and highlights Leisure System's ever-evolving aural curiosity. The opener and title track 'Like An Animal' is a number that builds and builds, quickly changing course and mutating into a percussive and texturized melting pot of sounds. Up next the hypnotic 'I Feel', which is filled with moody pads and syncopated breakbeat rhythms, paving the way for the mechanical, yet smooth half-step rhythm of 'Hot Lover'. Siimilar to the collective, this offering pushes boundaries and mirrors the progressive ideals of the collective. Just like Leisure System's first two 12's from Pixelord and Eprom in 2011, Barker's 'Like An Animal' EP is a clear statement of the label's simple and distinct commitment : to be a platform for timeless, thrilling and soulful dance music in the fields of house, techno and electronica, disregarding media hype and genre borders. In keeping with this clear sonic manifesto, Leisure System's design aesthetic is equally individual, with all vinyl releases housed in deluxe die-cut jackets.

Klectik014 marks Argentinean producer, Pablo Denegri's debut for the Chicago based label. Pablo has emerged in recent years as one of Buenos Aires most dynamic producers and performers in the techno world. His work has been featured on highly regarded labels such as Dumb-Unit and Unfoundsound, and his live set has been featured at many clubs across Europe and South America.

2024 Repress

Hurray! PROFAN is back from the future to complicate things again. But let's have a look back in the past: in the mid-1990s, Wolfgang Voigt, under his innumerable aliases (M:I:5, Digital, Grungerman, Wasserman …), unsettled the minimal world and its straight grooves with his right-at-the-threshold-of-pain abstract techno. As a DJ, you sometimes even thought that the vinyl was scratched. "Distort the listening habits until they break up" has always been the leitmotiv of this exceptional artist from Cologne. In 2000 however, after having created another promising trademark: WASSERMANN - W.I.R. that - in spite of or because of its unconventional structure (abstract beat, German vocals) - ranked among the number one hits in any important club and DJ charts and which was even remixed by Sven Väth, Wolfgang Voigt decided to discontinue the label for a while. PROFAN produced two sublabels each devoted to the refinement of specific minimal variants: STUDIO 1 and FREILAND. FREILAND in particular was and still is one of Voigt's projects that manifests his artistic and deconstrucivist approach to the aesthetics of techno beats. FREILAND's concept is radical: the only reference to techno is the bass drum and a sound reduced to the utmost that is moving around it. No wonder that now, eight years after the last PROFAN release, Wolfgang Voigt is back under his alias FREILAND. With KLAVIERMUSIK (piano music), Voigt continues his way towards atonality and electronic art music. The straight bass drum still is the only pulsatile instrument and sometimes it is not even that. WOLFGANG VOIGT / FREILAND - KLAVIERMUSIK is radical, puristic, uncompromising, elegiac, difficult, defiant, true and absolutely necessary. The record, including artcover designed by Wolfgang Voigt is strictly limited.. Greed sucks.