Session Victim (DJ) – NuSpirit, Bratislava

September 30, 2011

Session Victim (DJ) – Corsica Studios, London

January 28, 2012

Iron Curtis/Quarion/Session Victim – Treats Vol. 3 – RTR09

After a short break, Retreat is back in full swing with its first 2011 release: an essential new installment in the infamous Treats series! Featuring exclusive tracks from Iron Curtis, Quarion and Session Victim, Treats Vol. 3 represents a fascinating snapshot of each artist’s current musical evolution, whether it’s Iron Curtis’ own take on Detroit Techno, Quarion’s stripped-down House with a twist or Session Victim’s endless quest for the perfect groove.

You, On A Friday Night begins flat out with one of the dirtiest square wave bassline this side of the Atlantic, promptly followed by tambourine beats and offbeat FM stabs. It’s a rock-solid foundation and Iron Curtis unfolds it delicately for a good minute and a half before introducing the breakdown with a piercing synth chord. As the rhythm kicks back in with extra percussive elements, the iron man gets down to work on the bassline by twisting, filtering and stretching it in a very impressive manner. The beat drops once again while the sharp Juno synth reveals a proper chord sequence, bringing an unexpected emotional feel to the entire track. After an exciting build-up, the drums reappear and an additional hi-hat implements the final touch to this bouncy masterpiece.

Quarion deliberately ventures in tooly house territory with the super-effective groove of Mysteries Of Time. This tune highlights dubby chords revolving around a heavy 118 BPM rhythm and a strong sub-bass. Although pretty basic in its form, Mysteries Of Time has a very live feel as the beat seems to drift in and out of the foreground while someone speaks about the confusion of our awareness of time. The madness happens after 3 minutes as Quarion flips the script on time manipulation and introduces a bold tempo change! But you won’t be bobbing your head for too long as the track soon goes back to its original form and concludes as enigmatically as it began …

Turn the record over and the shuffling beat of Good Intentions will instantly pull you in Session Victim’s realm. The groove provided by these dusty Rhodes licks is nothing short of addictive and it will get your hips moving in no time. Subtle vocal snippets and a flowing drum programming lock the whole track on rails while keeping your behind on the floor. Your excitement grows as the SVM boys filter the main theme and Jupiter chords appear from the background. No doubt that you’ll be sweating that last shot of Tequila when the drums slam you back in the track and the loop makes a glorious comeback! But you’ll be able to catch a breather when a sweet synth melody plays along these dusty keys until Good Intentions reaches its well-rounded conclusion.

A1 – You, On A Friday Night
A2 –Mysteries Of Time
B1 – Good Intentions

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Release: May 25th 2011
(RTR-09 Releasesheet)

Retreat moves on to film production…

Well not really, but we couldn’t resist bulding another “trailer” for our upcoming release, “Treats Vol.3″, which features 3 banging tracks from Iron Curtis, Quarion and Session Victim! Each tune is edited down to 2 minutes and the whole EP is once again sequenced as a trailer, hollywood-style!

Session Victim (DJ) – Space, Ibiza

September 1, 2011

Session Victim (DJ) – Cookies, Berlin

September 8, 2011

Session Victim (DJ) & Quarion (DJ) – Suicide Circus, Berlin

June 18, 2011

Session Victim

Quarion

Andre Lodemann

http://www.residentadvisor.net/event.aspx?243578

Quarion – Moons around Jupiter – RTR08

More than a year after his last EP, Quarion returns to Retreat for a fantastic expedition: a journey to the »Moons around Jupiter«. Consisting of four tracks dedicated to the four Galilean satellites, »Moons around Jupiter« is a sonic masterpiece that blurs the lines between House, Techno, Broken Beat and Disco. A certain Detroit mystique (the futurism & outer space themes) also surrounds this mesmerizing ep which Quarion himself ranks as possibly his best work to date … come and take a ride!

We may share the ultimate bond with the moon Europa: the presumption of oceans underneath its crust of ice as well as an atmosphere that is mostly filled with oxygen make this satellite a good candidate for possible extra-terrestrial life (more micro-organisms than 3-eyed aliens though). Quarion’s »Europa« hopes to reveal the secrets underneath the ice layer: beginning with a skippy beat and a tinkling piano, the track evolves rapidly as subtle keys and a cosmic choir appear from beyond. The voices morph into pure excitement during the breakdown while gorgeous new chords are being introduced. The bassline drops and an irresistible groove settles in, soon followed by a catchy synth melody. The song rises to its apex only to be brought down immediately with a new set of Boogie drums. Extra analogue synths make a welcome entry while the main chords rise again from the background. That is until the reappearance of the Boogie beat which tones the music down and brings the mysterious »Europa« to its conclusion.

The moon Ganymede has much in common with Europa but scientists agree that it is impossible for the former to harbour life. This is why »Ganymede« is the beatapella version of »Europa«, a short but effective rework with only the basic drum elements…

The moon Callisto is the furthest away from Jupiter’s radiation. It is said to be highly suitable for a human base, in case we intend to explore this part of the solar system one day. »Callisto« is therefore Quarion’s ode to space travel in the form of lush organ chords, heavy drums and ethereal pads. The track is a deep and dreamy journey that flows effortlessly as cosmic rhodes melodies and detroitish synths move around the stereophonic landscape.

The moon Io has over 400 active volcanoes and its atmosphere is made up of sulphuric dioxide. A very, very dangerous place indeed, which inspires Quarion to show his rougher side via a raw and heavy 110 bpm workout. The sounds are kept to a minimum (weird pads, strings and a heavy bassline) but »Io« is full of surprises, the best of all being a minute long break where the listener feels suddenly lost in deep space … before »Io’s« gravity pulls him back on its perilous grounds.

A1 – Europa
A2 – Ganymede
B1 – Callisto
B2 – Io

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Release: December 15th 2010
(Releasesheet)

Session Victim (DJ) – Wilde Renate, Berlin

December 4, 2010

Session Victim (DJ) – Farbfernseher, Berlin

December 11, 2010

with Andreas Andersson