Tevo Howard At Juno Download

Review: Tevo Howard stands alone in his ability to make true Chicago house music that keeps the feel of the original sounds of the city but adds a fresh and contemporary edge. After the success of his HHYR debut, "Move", he returns to the label with "Crystal Republic," a six track exploration through warm, deep and emotive Chicago house music.

The title track is hypnotic and dipped in melancholy yet still drenched in beautiful melodies. "Laboratory" and "The Glass Ceiling" are more energetic, the latter of which utilising an uptempo jacking beat but still retaining the emotion that is ever present on the release. "Material" has crisp, acid basslines that linger above brooding undertones as the track embarks along a detailed journey through clever arrangement. More raw and rugged however, is "Data." First there is a relentless jacking version before finishing with an extended version, as hypnotic as it is all enticing.

Although this release is clearly heavily inspired by the original sounds of Chicago house music, Howard's crisp productions give them a fresh vibe that is very much of today. Full of emotion and depth, each track is like a journey through the past but ending up in the present.

Review: New school Chicagoan Tevo Howard has impressed of late with a string of formidable releases for the mighty Rush Hour. His forte has always been his trademark production style, which offers a retro-futurist fusion of classic Larry Heard deepness and raw Chi-Town jack. Here, he continues on that theme, offering four varied versions of new cut "Dusa". All offer some thick 303 action, reliably hissy syncopated hi-hats and long, dreamy chords and drifting synth melodies. There are two "rough" versions for those who like their house raw, and a pair of "disco" mixes that add a sprightly synth bassline. In truth, the whole EP is typically accomplished.

Review: Tevo Howard seems to be in something approaching a rich vein of form currently, with countless EPs drenched in excellence for his own Tevo Howard Recordings imprint as well as the likes of Buzzin' Fly and Rush Hour (the collaborations with his dad for the latter in particular). It's little surprise that Ben Watt has invited Tevo back for a second Buzzin' Fly release after his successful debut The Age of Compassion last year. And the three tracks that make up the Monument EP are a near perfect example of Howard's various strengths as a producer, though "Conditional Love" is an undoubted highlight. The track bumps along with a gloriously quirky quality, its warm analogue groove embellished by an array of delightful percussive and rhythmic touches.

Review: For those who've already fallen in love with Tevo Howard's distinctive take on Chicago jack, Pandora's Box will no doubt be an essential purchase. In truth, it's an accurate title, with the Chicagoan DJ exploring a variety of his favourite themes over the course of an entertaining hour of dancefloor-centric cuts. Amongst the eight tracks you'll find Italo-influenced electronic house ("Pandora's Box"), synthpop-goes jack (the Underground Mix of "Spend Some Time"), addictive acid ("The Instruction"), smart melodic deepness ("Autumn Spell", "Intersection"), old skool electro-house ("Confusion") and even straightforward Chicago pop (the Pop Mix of "Spend Some Time"). Pure class from start to finish.

Review: Munich's excellent Permanent Vacations nudge towards a century of releases with a typically warm EP of huggable electronic grooves from the unpredictable Tevo Howard. Epic opener "Pump & Bounce" is the stand out cut. Built around a heady, intoxicating fusion of melancholic chords, tactile synths, stargazing melodies and seemingly cheap electronic sounds, it rises and falls for an impressive nine minutes. "You Have A Way With Words" spits and jumps with fuzzy machine rhythms and low-slung synths, while the hypnotic rhythms and crystalline arpeggios of "What Is Sound" are stunning in their emotion-rich simplicity. "Content (Dawn Mix)", on the other hand, is just beautiful. Bravo, Tevo, bravo!

Review: The father and son team Rick and Tevo Howard has dropped some joint classics in recent years and it's nice to see them back together on wax courtesy of the Bio Rhythm label. Overseen by Paul Du Lac, the Dutch imprint demonstrated impressive form in its short life to date, calling on Jamal Moss, Albert Van Abbe and Crystal Maze for some excellent releases. The House Room EP has Rick and Tevo dropping an original cut that brings back the warm feeling of those early Beautiful Granville releases, whilst Du Lac gets the chance to show off his own production prowess across two remixes with the latter Acid Dub a real jack hammering joy.