After a split 12” and two eps from its founders, your favourite vinyl-only label welcomes an exciting new artist for its fourth release. Hailing from Berlin, Hunee is a true music lover, a passionate dj and an amazing producer (not to mention a top notch friend). His recent productions on Feel Music, w.t. Records and Drumpoet Community have caught the ear of many key players and made him one to watch in 2010. Needless to say, Hunee takes it to a whole other level with his Barrio Payment trilogy: from soulful House to slow-mo Disco via Afrobeat, the producer holds nothing back and that’s exactly how we like it at Retreat hq.
Starting off with swinging hi-hats and a wah-wah loop, Foundation builds excitement before a killer organ riff and bouncy bassline manage to bring the last non-dancers on the floor. A whispered ouh baby gives you a hint of what happens next: an emotional break where a woman declares her love to her companion while majestic chords rise from the background. Add a drunken-style hihat, some claps and you’ll feel goose bumps when the kick drum and bassline come back in! The track just seems to grow and grow until it breaks down once more to let the organ riff reappear and take you just that bit higher … what a rush!
The B-side begins with the polyrhythmic action of Barrio Payment: layers and layers of percussion, scattered drums and marimba licks. Is this really House Music? Does anyone care? Similar to the beat freakings of Tony Allen or IG Culture, Barrio Payment rolls and rolls with a solid bassline anchoring the groove. But just when you think it’s just a drum & bass workout, Detroit-style stabs warp the track in another new dimension and turn it into the official soundtrack to Nigeria’s upcoming space program.
To finish off an already amazing ep, Hunee comes through with the super erotic Funk of Amiadar. With its slow groove and hot vocal snippets, Amiadar begs to be played as the last track of the night, before couples continue their dance behind closed doors … Sexy but never vulgar, the tune unfolds at it’s own pace, thanks to moody chords and offbeat percussion. The break is truly ecstatic: with a majestic synth bassline rising from the background and intense moaning, you can only let yourself go as the break resolves in a sweaty beat. Amiadar then reaches its conclusion in a gentle manner while the sexual tension never drops …
A1 – Foundation
B1 – Barrio Payment
B2 – Amiadar
Release: November 4th 2009
(RTR04_releasesheet)