3rd Strike At Juno Download

Review: Absolutely sick return to the game for Erdbeerschnitzel after an extended period in the record releasing wilderness. Arising on regular haunt 3rd Strike, the German producer reveals a hitherto hidden talent for working with vocalists on "Always Remain", a stupendously bouncy collaboration with The Drifter. Now the term future boogie gets thrown around far too easily these days, but "Always Remains" is definitely that, the yearningly soulful tones of The Drifter effortlessly riding a day glo procession of multi layered luminescent synths and live drum fills. Subsequent to this, the Strawberry flavoured one indulges in some suitably murky explorations of house music rhythms via "Same Same" which ascends from its dusty beginnings into a deliciously off kilter groove garnished with a suitably pots-and-pans approach to percussion. The point where a soaring piano arrives and the track swerves into some kind of subaqueous treatment of classic Chicago House invocations is pretty much perfect. Check the flip where "A Merchants Lament" switches up the tempo again, bringing intricate MPC manipulations around chewed up vocal samples that unfold with soulful intent - again it's the disregard to sit with one direction across the length of the track that smacks you for six. "Devotion" begins in calmer fashion as delicate female harmonies float in over the rhythmic marriage of swerving piano flutters, cleverly chopped beats and what might be deft sampling of the Seinfeld intro. Just when you think matters will remain calm, the mother of all electric organ lines comes in and signals a huge rise in dancefloor impact.

Review: Melbourne is becoming quite the breeding ground for burgeoning disco-house talent these days isn't it? We've had Tornado Wallace and Fantastic Man, and now The Tortoise (aka Torquhil Anderson) steps up to the plate with a debut release on the excellent 3rd Strike imprint. The three original tracks on offer are filter-heavy jams that flit effortlessly between disco loops and deep house atmospherics. Meanwhile Berlin's resident South Korean disco head, Hunee, adds his inimitable touch to "Next Time Around", adding some raw house bump to the original. A hugely impressive debut - more please Mr Tortoise.

Review: A welcome return for Under The Shade's sister label Third Strike, following a brief hiatus/winter spent chasing the sun in far-flung resorts (delete as appropriate). For their 10th release, they've handed the reigns over to label regular The Tortoise. He turns in a hazy, bass-heavy deep house cut that slowly transforms from a druggy chugger into a disco-sampling anthem over the course of seven action-packed minutes. The Mole & Herno provide the first of two remixes, delivering a low-slung version that could provide the soundtrack to some kind of weird voodoo ritual. Rondenion provides the other rework (a spiraling disco/deep house mash-up), while "Keep On Keeping On" delivers 10 minutes of sparse, proto-house-meets-deep house oddness.

Review: In the space of just three releases, Under The Shade's deep house offshoot 3rd Strike has established itself as one of the best new labels around. Already they've released superb EPs from Homepark and man-to-watch Erdbeerschnitzel; the latter with 'friend of the family' Mark E on remix duties. This fourth release from Vakula is every bit as essential as its predecessors. Each of the five tracks is strong in its own right, from the druggy, broken house wonk of "Beat Ja" to the percussive thump of "All The Same", via the title track's unsettling, picturesque build. Vakula even finds space for a short DJ tool, "Nerve" - a two-minute exercise in blissful, late night beauty.

Review: Vakula, perhaps Juno's favourite Ukrainian export since Mila Kunis, returns to 3rd Strike Records and together they deliver perhaps their finest work to date. Whilst his work to date for Firecracker, Ethereal Sound and Quintessentials has been filled with pedigree, there's a sheen of specialness that cloaks the four productions here which grabs you as soon as the introspective strings that punctuate the sumptuous deep bump of "Touch" grace your senses. Complementing this is the slinky freeform beatdown bliss of "Gospel Keyboards" which is naturally big on the melodic flourishes. Up next "Crossing" eeks out a glacial throb, all rusted jacking rhythms and frosted basslines, before taking a swift left turn into a delightful pattern of ivory swirls. The final arrival of fuzzed out acid melodies demonstrate how versatile a producer Vakula is. Proceedings end on the title track, another excursion into ethereal beatdown filled with jazzed melodic touches which kind of sounds like Anton Zap remixing the Cheers theme tune (definitely a good thing).

Review: In a year where Vakula has released countless records on a number of labels (with more to follow) his Saturday EP on 3rd Strike perhaps stands alone for marrying his trademark attention to detail with dancefloor appeal. Whereas his Shevchenko twelves in particular have the capacity to draw a dancefloor into a collective standing stupor at the sonic richness, the four tracks on the Saturday EP bumped hard. The title track is revisited by the label here as they enlist some illuminating names to add their own slant on it with Legowelt, Fudge Fingas and Deetron all featuring across this twelve. Naturally, the effort from Legowelt proves to be a real highlight, especially when the strains of acid lock in amidst the constantly unravelling analogue oscillations and rough drums, but the other remixes provide enough variety in tempo and feel to ensure this is worth investigation.