Hivern Disc Spain At Juno Download

Review: Something of a treat here from Barcelona's Hivern Disc label, as they deliver the first in a series of digital-only releases focusing on analogue-heavy house jams. Stylistically, much of the material sits somewhere between classic Chicagoan acid, vintage deep house and the retro-futurist new school doodlings of the 100% Silk label, without particularly sounding like any. There's a glacial melancholy to the woozy melodies and vintage jack of Aster's superb "Olde", while T&J's afro-tinged "Drum & Synths" sounds like it was beamed down from some distant star. Kresy's "En Bypass"exudes a delicious warmth, whilst Marc Pinol's "Solve Et Coagula" has an analogue swing and clattering groove all of its own. Formidable fare.

Review: Introducing an artist via a series of high profile remixes of material not yet heard is always a risky method, but when it's a label such as Hivern Discs you are always likely to go with the flow. So step into the world of mysterious producer Mistakes Are OK, announced as a producer residing in Hivern hometown Barcelona and granted the honour of the label's first artist album. It's clear the label are investing a lot in such an unknown quantity and intrigue is ramped further by the artists Hivern has elected to remix the music of Mistakes Are OK. Kassem Mosse and Mix Mup serve further illuminating evidence of their blossoming working relationship with a remix of "Best Before" that lollops at such a stunted pace even 45 rpm sounds too slow. It's mutant dance beats at their most disfigured and it's hard to envision this sort of music coming from anyone else right now. Given the anonymous nature of the original material, Downliners Sekt are quite apt choices to remould "Crumbs" into a track that lurches in the lower recesses of speaker fuzz before rising into a paranoid rhythmic stutter that can easily be branded post-burial if you care not to focus on its textural intricacies. Finally, Rush Hour regular BNJMN provides the most floor appropriate revision with a focused techno groove that gradually becomes drenched in melodic warmth.