Quarion – Shifts in the Environment EP – RTR13

June 14, 2013

RTR13 LabelWhen was the last time that you came across a Quarion record? It was probably back in 2010 with »Moons Around Jupiter« and since then the producer went largely missing. Feeling that he had reached an artistic dead end, Quarion decided to take a step back from the scene in order to experiment with new ways of making music. It took almost 3 years but needless to say, it was worth the wait: »Shifts In the Environment« is an essential collection of superb tracks which celebrate House music in its various declinations. Although it still sounds unmistakably Quarion, one can’t help but notice a certain toughness in this new material as well as the will to break rules, making this EP a fascinating listening experience and a sure-shot 12″ for the dance floor!

If »Moons Around Jupiter« reached for the stars then »Digging For Water« is the homecoming on good old Earth. This dirty and groovy slice of House music begins as a vintage Quarion production with its funky beat, bubbling sub bass and strings. After a quick build-up, the track introduces a filtered chord sequence that grabs your attention straight away. The chords slowly unfold with subtle new harmonies until the break brings forth an exciting new bassline. But just when you thought that the tune is heading in an epic direction, it deceptively gets reduced to a pounding beat and a surprising Acid motif. The riff gets quickly infectious however, and while all the musical elements come back together piece by piece, the bassline carries »Digging For Water« to that epic moment you were promised earlier and all you can say is wooo!

Slowing things down a bit, »The Plump Shrew« is a straight-up Boogie jam. Bouncy drums lay the foundation for one of the nastiest bassline this side of Kreuzberg while a strange saloon piano drops in and out of the picture. An even weirder 5-note loop comes in as the track builds with more percussion to an exciting climax. You’re definitely hooked when fresh Juno stabs take center stage and make the tune just that little bit more juicy! A quirky synth melody moves a few times around the stereo spectrum and before you know it »The Plump Shrew« comes to an end. The fat mouse has got the cheese and is enjoying it very much, thank you!

The B-side is solely dedicated to »The Red Room«, an interdimensional portal which only appears to FBI agents with a craving for cherry pie. Or so it seems … Musically, it’s a tough, freaky and synth-heavy affair as Quarion pushes his studio to the limit and squeezes out every possible sound out of his analog gear. The track heads in multiple directions although a massive 2-note riff always keeps it grounded. A menacing drone creeps up from the background before being swept away by an hypnotizing synth riff and a hi-hat running wild. But as the sub bass kicks in, the drone gets more present and evolves into a daring motive, slowly consuming all the elements until a dramatic break-down where »The Red Room« seems to spin totally out of control. That is until the 2-note riff anchors you back to the floor and leads the track to its conclusion with a tight beat.

A1 – Digging For Water
A2 – The Plump Shrew
B1 – The Red Room

Release: June 19th 2013 (get it here)

(RTR-13_Releasesheet)

The heat is on!

June 2, 2013
so hot it will melt your chocolates

so hot it will melt your chocolates

It’s that time of the year again: the sun appears for the first time in months, Berliners are in a better mood and the Retreat HQ is buzzing with activity after a long hibernation!

But to be honest, the people behind your favourite vinyl-only label were actually quite busy these last few months: Hauke has been on an extensive touring schedule with his mate Matthias Reiling as Session Victim, smashing club after club in Europe, Russia, the USA and Canada while still dropping essential remixes and tracks for Wolf Music, Compost Black and Retrofit. Quarion on the other hand worked hard in the studio and finally delivered a follow-up to 2010′s “Moons Around Jupiter”! Introducing 3 monster tracks that cover a wide spectrum of Dance music, the “Shifts In The Environment” EP is a return to form as well as a departure from the traditional House sound associated with the producer. Expect the record to hit the shelves in mid-june, but of course, we’ll keep you posted on this one.

Actually, RTR13 is only the first out of six releases coming out this summer. What?!!? Well, sort of: we’ve decided to finally repress some of our earlier catalog on full quality 180 gram vinyl! Needless to say that you might run into a lot of Retreat wax in the shops these next months as most of the EPs were sold out until now! But if you want to secure a copy of “Pepper Candy”, “Move Me So” or the classic “Good Intentions” (yes!) you can also go straight to our webshop, put in a preorder and receive the records as soon as they’re hot off the press! Oh, and we’ll even throw in a special present for those looong summer afternoons at the festival, open-air afterparty or biergarten!

It’s getting hot in here so stay tuned for more news!

Iron Curtis – Glazing EP – RTR12

December 25, 2012

RTR_Label-12After the well-received “Treats Vol.4”, Retreat closes its 2012 chapter with a fantastic 4-tracker from House maestro Iron Curtis! Following his accomplished debut album on Mirau, «Glazing» is a highly versatile EP which sees the producer breaking new ground while staying true to his inimitable style. Expect the unexpected as Iron Curtis stretches House music far beyond its known boundaries with the help of Psychedelia, Dubstep and Hip-Hop!

«Glazing» kick things off with a swinging beat, a cowbell and one of those square bass punch that has «Chicago» all over it. But appearances can be deceiving as a drunk bassline emerges from the background with snappy vocals and hidden chords. The track builds steadily for almost 3 minutes before a very dramatic break: the wonky bassline takes center stage, majestic chords rise from every side and before you know it, your skin starts to crawl as you witness once again another euphoric “House” experience. You lose control as the beat comes back with extra ride cymbals which take you on a dancing frenzy. Subtle arpeggios float from left to right and vice-versa as «Glazing» takes you higher and higher. It finally eases down after 5 minutes: the bassline is reduced, the beat stripped down to its essentials and you’re gently taken to the tracks’s final stop. What a ride!

But if «glazing» takes you sky-high, «Helio» flies you to the center of our solar system as Iron Curtis displays his incredible talents for a tribute to our sun.You can almost see the solar flares as different beats smash into each other while surprising effects are dropped. A simple but solid bassline holds the whole madness together while 909 percussion, strings and pads seem to appear at will. A terrific break with cosmic wurlitzer chords suddenly takes “Helio” in a place beyond space and time. But the rotation starts again and you’re taken for another mad spin before the pads slowly disintegrate and you’re left with just the bassline and sound effects…

Flip the record and mysterious chords introduce «17» before a massive kick drum nails the track down. It takes a minute for the tune to pick up speed until a growling, almost reese-like bassline drops in. As additional percussion fills the whole, «17» sounds like the most «traditional» House track of the whole EP. That is until beautiful pads take it in a more emotional direction. It’s another goose-bump moment as a vocal loop filters up in the background before the groove comes back in a more basic form. Wahwah chords and strings make sure that “17” stays firmly on the deeper side of things before it reaches a classic beat-only conclusion.

Iron Curtis concludes his Tour De Force with the brilliant «Super Sorry», a nifty little Hip-Hop tune with descending chords, weird vocal samples and off-beat percussion. A few sneaky synths creep up in the background here and there and before you know it, the track comes to an end and leaves you with no other option but to play it again!

A1 – Glazing
A2 – Helio
B1 – 17
B2 – Super Sorry

Release: January 16th 2013 (get it here)

(RTR-12_Releasesheet)

December runnings

November 30, 2012

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doing it in the park

Yep, we’ve been a bit quiet for a while but looks like December will keep us busy!

First of all, we’re organizing our last party of 2012 in the magical Loftus Hall! On the bill is Mr. Beatnick for his first ever performance in Berlin. Iron Curtis with a brand new live set and the Retreat officials Session Victim and Quarion! Get all the details here but be sure not to miss out on that one!

And we’re excited to announce that RTR12 is finished and getting processed in the pressing plant as we speak! Iron Curtis comes correct with a lethal 4-tracker which propels House music into the unknown!

We’ll drop more info in the coming week so please stay tuned…

Session Victim/The Hints/Iron Curtis & Leaves – Treats Vol. 4 – RTR11

July 23, 2012

Your favourite vinyl-only label kicks off its 2012 discography with another episode of the Treats saga! If the previous volume were associated with straightup dancefloor goodies, Number 4 is more focused on musicianship as Session Victim, The Hints (Quarion & Jules Etienne) and Iron Curtis & Leaves pick up the instruments to compose 3 songs drenched in Funk and Soul with an undeniable 21st century House feeling!

Fresh off their acclaimed The Haunted House Of House album, Session Victim fire up the ep with something that seldom occurs nowadays: the cover of a modern Dance classic! Originally released on Deeply Rooted House by the enigmatic Rootstrax, Harlequin has already achieved mythical status thanks to its amazing bassline. Clocking in at almost eight minutes, svm’s version is a proper Funk workout that begins with rhodes chords, percussion, guitar melodies and saxophone licks over a long yet exciting intro. But as soon as the live bassline kicks in, you know that it’s game over and that people with or without true dancing skills will sweat it out on the floor! Add to that an enigmatic vocal, some rhodes and sax riffs coming at every turn as well as a few chord changes and this piece really is the closest Session Victim have ever been to sound like a proper band. Wow!

The B-side introduces The Hints, a new project from Quarion co-produced with multi-instrumentalist Jules Etienne, one of Berlin’s best kept musical secret. The Hints prefer an old school approach to making music, so apart from the mpc  beat and sampled vocal, all the instruments have been played live by Q & J on the 110 bpm Boogie monster that is Downtown: liquid Pianet chords, Poly 61 stabs, a killer bassline, dramatic organ layers, live (and loose) percussion and even a  quick trumpet melody! The groove is tight and could go on for hours but the Hints love to come up with new chords so we’re treated with a wonderful bridge that appears twice in the song. The Hints also love to keep things short and sweet, so Downtown stays under the 6-minute mark but leaves a fulfilling impression.

After his celebrated debut album on Mirau, Iron Curtis teams up again with Leaves for another sweet and sour House-pop gem. A & F features melancholic rhodes chords that set the stage for a skippy beat and a weird keyboard loop. The  bassline builds up a nice groove while the mysterious Leaves sings with a soft voice. Passion is the theme of this extra fine little boogie snack that actually finishes way too soon and leaves you craving for more! May we suggest to just put the  needle back on and play the track over and over again, like we’ve doing for the past few weeks?

A – Harlequin
B1 – Downtown
B2 – A & F

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Release: July 25th 2012
(RTR-11_Releasesheet)

RTR REELS 05 – Session Victim “The Loom of the Land”

July 19, 2012

After a two-year pause, we’re happy to resurrect our series of Retreat podcasts with none other than Session Victim! After two solo excursions (reels 1 and reels 4 from Hauke Freer and Matthias Reiling respectfully), a proper SVM mix was long overdue and “The Loom of the Land” most definitely delivers the goods! In a smooth, yet trippy 30-minute ride, the deadly duo mixes up 9 tracks ranging from their own output to music from Four Tet, Fudge Fingas and Black Sabbath! And with three Session Victim tunes (including an unreleased intro!), this podcast is just the perfect companion to SVM’s fantastic “The Haunted House Of House” album out now on Delusions On Grandeur!

Quarion’s June chart

June 21, 2012

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Wow, I can’t believe it’s been more than two years since my last official chart! But it just happened that I feel like doing it again for some unknown reason…and of course because there’s a lot of very good music out there! So here we go for another selection of tunes that have been rocking my world this month, some yet to be released, some already in the shops:

Baikal – Just You And Me (feat. The Drifter) / Why Don’t Ya – Maeve

The debut from an unknown artist on a new label ? Well kind of, the only thing I can tell is that Maeve is co-run by 2012’s hotshot Mano Le Tough. So what can we expect? One of the best records of 2012, no less! Both tunes are masterfully crafted, tough enough to rock any dancefloor, yet deep enough to please all the true music heads.

Ripperton – Show Me – Tamed Musiq

My mate Ripperton is really killing it on this epic house tune : intricate percussion, dramatic piano chords and a killer analog bass workout. Clocking in at 11 minutes but without a single repetitive moment, this is the real definition of panoramic House music.

Dachshund & Quenum – The Mammoth – Rebellion

Two of Geneva’s finest team up for a tune that is causing major damage on the floor! I’ve managed to get hold of this track a few months ago and I’ve been dropping it in all of my sets ever since. The trick here is the old school « reese » bassline : as soon as it drops, you want to scream « rewind !!! » and pretend like it’s 1996 at the Blue Note all over again…

Session Victim – Harlequin – Retreat

This one is coming out on Retreat at the end of July and it’s very special : SVM get to grips with « Harlequin » from Rootstrax and turn it into a funk workout with live bass! It sounds so organic, you would swear Session Victim are a forgotten 1970’s Funk band that just happen to make House music before the cats in Chicago…

Georgia Anne Muldrow – Seeds (LP) – Someothaship

I was always a Madlib fan, but I really became addicted to his music when he started the « Medecine Show » series back in 2010. What was better than getting a dope new Madlib album every month?!!? Since then, I’ve been a bit desperate for a Beat Konducta fix, that is  until I discovered that he recently produced the whole “Seeds” album! Georgia and Otis are definitely a match made in heaven and « Seeds » is one of the most soulful and freakiest albums I’ve heard in a while. Plus, it’s pretty short too, which makes you want to play it over and over again!

I:Cube – M Megamix (LP) – Versatile

Ahhh, this album…Again, I’ve been lucky enough to get a promo Test Pressing back in April and I’ve been listening to it ever since. It’s one of those « love it or hate it » albums and has already sparked up a few heated debates. I personaly think that “M Megamix” is a pure work of genius : 24 so-good-it-hurts tracks in roughly an hour, blended in an almost zapping manner. There’s been nothing like this album before and it’s definitely a landmark for elctronic music. I:Cube for president!

Alden Tyrell – Rush/Tntus – Clone Basement Series

I looooove these series from Clone ! This piece of wax is straight-up raw Techno : drum machines, a chord sound and that’s it! Of course I play this at -4 or -6 on the turntable but it still works a charm…

Charles Webster Feat. Shana Halligan – Give Me More – Miso

Also one of the stables in my box these last few weeks, “Give Me More” is the sort of music I strive for as a producer, a tune that is complex yet soulful, reduced yet groovy. Charles Webster is the master of blending US soul sensitivity with european freaky electronics and this track is the perfect showcase.

Underworld – Crocodile (Âme Live Remix) – Innervisions

A stripped-down, straight-to-the-point live rework from one of my all-time favourite duo. The track unfolds slowly until the catchy vocal and then gets loose with one of the nastiest synth workout since Carl Craig’s remix of Cesaria Evora.

Chymera – Death By Misadventure (LP) – Connaisseur

I love this album simply for the fact that it evolves in its own universe and that only repeated listens will reveal all of its secrets. “Death By Misadventure” pretty much covers the whole spectrum of electronic music yet manages to stay coherent and groovy. One of the best dance music albums of recent memory…

The White Lamp – It’s You (Ron Basejam remix) – Future Boogie

I’ve also been playing this one for weeks but the effect is always the same : People get hooked when the bassline drops and start shouting during the second break when these tear-jerking rhodes chords come in. « The Sun comes shining »…definitely one of this summer’s tune!

Edu Lobo – Por Edu Lobo – Elenco

I feel a bit ashamed, but it’s only recently that I’ve been properly digging brazilian music. I guess I needed to travel over there to catch the virus and thanks to some recent gigs in São Paulo, I’m very addicted to Bossa and Brazilian Jazz now. This album from Edu Lobo featuring the legendary Tamba Trio is nothing short of a masterpiece and refuses to leave my turntable since days…

Entering year n°4

January 6, 2012

our flashy new 2012 logo...a bit posh, don't you think?

Happy New Year everybody!

You’ve turned 2011 into 12 very special months for Retreat so we wanted to thank you for your unlimited support!

There were many highlights this year: our first Retreat tour outside of Europe (in Australia of all places!), the exponential growth of our online shop, the mad success of Session Victim‘s “Good Intentions” (which even landed on RA’s “tracks of 2011″ poll!) and the enthusiastic reviews of Matthias Reiling’s “Escape The Room”.

We’re thrilled that our vinyl-only imprint is getting some props, although to be honest, our goal was never to get a piece of the hype pie with the help of charts or reviews. Retreat is, and forever will be, a label that cares most of all about music, hence our erratic release schedule: a new Retreat record only happens when Hauke and myself feel 100% happy with the tunes!

But the attention we received in 2011 has definitely proven that quality prevails over quantity: Retreat had only 2 records out last year but they might have had the most impact out of our whole catalogue! So thanks again for your endless support!

Now what is to expect from Retreat in 2012? Well we’re still juggling with different ideas, namely a new Quarion EP or the next volume of “Treats” so we won’t announce RTR11 yet…

But one thing for sure is that there’s a lot of action going on for Retreat artists OUTSIDE of Retreat in the form of debut albums: Session Victim have put the final touches to their longplayer for Delusions Of Grandeur and are prepared to drop this groove masterpiece before the summer! Iron Curtis is also working on his first full length for Mirau and the album is due to surface some time in the second half of 2012!

As you can see, everything is pretty much under wraps at the moment, but rest assured that more info on all these various projects will pop up on this blog when the time is right. ;-)

Enjoy the beginning of 2012 for now and stay tuned!

Freshly repressed!

November 13, 2011

Records? Somebody wants records?

Back in 2010, we released two records that sold out quickier than hot pancakes: the “Treats Vol.2″ sampler featuring tunes from Session Victim and Quarion followed by a 12″ from Session Victim entitled “On The Roll”. Since then, we’ve been constantly asked to repress these EPs and after much delay, we finally ordered a fresh batch of RTR05 & RTR06!

We were so excited to have ALL of our productions back in stock that we also took the opportunity to upgrade our webshop page with a broader display, an embedded SC player and dope new releases out of the Frank Music, Fried Tofu, or Lurker camp!

Thanks for your ongoing support, signing off for now!

De:bug review of RTR10

October 27, 2011