Review: It seems as if 15 years have just flown by since Berlin institution Watergate first opened their doors at the base of the famous Oberbaumbrucke, overlooking the River Spree and where long queues run down the street every weekend to get into one of the best clubs in the world. To celebrate their journey over the last decade and a half, they have put together a special anniversary release of 25 new, exclusive and formerly unreleased tracks. Residents of the superclub all appear, such as Hamburg native Matthias Meyer who teams up with Ryan Davis on the evocative "Hope", famed local duo Tiefschwarz deliver the slow burning and moody tech house of "Control", Sweden's La Fleur (of Power Plant fame) delivers the acidic bump and shuffle of "Femton" and former Stattbad resident and Beste Modus boss Cinthie gets deep on the classic house sound of "Hatschi Hatschi" which has a whole heap of swing to it!
Review: On his sixth album, Berlin based DJ, label owner and producer Oliver Koletzki presents his remarkable vision of contemporary electronic music. The Arc of Tension speaks to its listener as a singular, self contained work, which communicates by way of its natural flow and arc of suspense. The latter is mirrored not only in the multifarious narrative of the actual album, but can also be understood as evidence for its creator's long musical history. While Koletzki focused on a diverse range of vocal collaborations on his previous long players, he now moves on to a different form of storytelling, rooted in the quiet confidence of a veteran musician, as well as the hectic lifestyle of a globally in demand DJ. The Arc of Tension is the 'psychoanalytic' journey through the various continents of Oliver's consciousness.
Review: Congratulations to long-running Berlin label Still Vor Talent, which has now notched up no less than 200 releases. To celebrate this milestone, the label has put together this fine celebratory compilation featuring contributions from "old and new faces". Fittingly, it's arguably one of the imprint's strongest and most varied releases to date. Of course, there's plenty of typically Germanic fusions of deep house and tech-house present, but also the Arabic-influenced deep house exotica of Sam Shure, the rising, piano-laden dancefloor bliss of Oliver Koletzki's "Don't Take Yourself Too Seriously", the heavily electronic, club-ready psychedelia of Fideles ("Dark Stone") and the lilting melodies of Deorbiting's warm and picturesque "Warnsignal".
Review: Berlin native Oliver Koletzki has cited his hometown as a main point of reference and inspiration throughout his career. His last two albums are said to be 'wholehearted tributes' to the German capital and its importance in the current climate of electronic music. The label's aesthetic - right down to the cover art is testament to this - featuring photos of local landmarks and graffiti adorning his fair city. There are little to no corners in the city that haven't brought a spark of inspiration into the mix and the eighth instalment of the Schneeweiss (English translation 'white snow') compilation series, is said to be a tribute to the many aspects or 'particles' consolidated as a series of carefully curated tracks. There's so many highlights on here and we're only going to name a few, but they're not limited to: hometown hero and one time Terranova member Rampa's brooding dance floor drama on "Fluke", Frankey & Sandrino bridging the gap between tech-house and nu-disco ever so gracefully again on "Solaris", Cologne's finest Andhim lend their deft hand on a remix of Leipzig figurehead Matthias Tanzmann's "Coffee Clouds" and the man from Mannheim Ray Okpara who's still going: his track "Satin Curtain" getting a smooth remix by the legendary Kevin Yost.
Review: Long standing hero of the Berlin scene and Stil Vor Talent chief Oliver Koletzki steps up to present a fine collection of remixes for his label's next installment. He's been crafting for prolific friends and outstanding musicians for close to a decade, and for Remix Tales Koletzki has now compiled his personal favourites (with some previously unreleased ones too). Features his emotive take on German duo HVOB's "Dogs", Frank 'Ame' Wiedemann and Ry 'X' Cuming's Howling project on "Stole The Night", through to legends such as French Touch pioneers Cassius on "Toop Toop" and NYC electroclash icons Fischerspooner on "The Best Revenge". Keep your ears peeled for his upcoming full length which will be released very soon.
Review: "Planetarium" is a taster for Oliver Koletzki's sixth artist album, The Arc of Tension, and it feels like he has gone back to his roots. Featuring the kind of big room, wobbly bass that has made the Berlin producer one of his home country's most popular names, it also references a more innocent time in German dance music. Intertwined with the relentless rhythm and powerful bass are the kind of spellbinding trance melodies that take influence from the now defunct Eye Q label and The Omen club during its prime. In short, "Planetarium" is a wonderfully euphoric serving of timeless trance-techno.
Review: Extraordinary pieces of music have long stood in direct correlation to the physical surroundings that inspire them. When Oliver Koletzki and Niko Schwind packed up their Berlin studios last April to spend a month locked away in a cottage nestled in the stunning nature of Cape Town's Noordhoek area before heading to AfrikaBurn, little did they know that its long beaches, dramatic mountain views and the heritage of its indigenous people would have such a profound effect on the club-ready sound they had championed with a string of EPs and live-performances since 2015. The result of four weeks of geo-cultural stimuli and creative experimentation culminated in the album Noordhoek, released in May 2018 on Stil vor Talent.
Review: Does exactly what it says on the tin really: No Filler Just Killer comes in again for the third volume courtesy of Oliver Koletzki's long running Berlin tech house institution. Experience the soundtrack to a misspent youth in Berlin this summer, coming at you courtesy of label head honcho Koletzki himself with the moody and tunnelling journey of "This Heartless", the tripped out minimal madness of Asem Shama's "Magic's Gonna Happen" which reminds us of classic Audion or Marc Houle, Bjorn Storig delivers some smooth and slinky progressive house vibes on "Babylon Angels" while Ferdinand Dreyssig ventures further into the void on the moody industrial-edged stomper "Amnesia".
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