Author: yanneck

Retreat Label Party – Edelweiss, Berlin

Headlining the february edition of Retreat’s monthly party is Baaz, a relatively new producer that knows a thing or two about jackin’ Deep House! His productions for Agnès‘ Sthlmaudio imprint have been played by everyone who has an ear for soulful music and he’s set to have much more quality material coming out in the future, including some abstract Hip-hop bits.

Quarion will perform his first ever live set in Edelweiss and has promised to come up with something special…let’s take heed to his word and expect the unexpected from this producer who has roots in Hip-Hop and Jazz!

Fresh from an Australia tour, the label’s co-owner Hauke Freer will treat you with a sweet warm-up of soul, disco and House flavors, elements that you’ll also find on his excellent new 12″ with partner Mathias Reiling for Delusions of Grandeur.

All in all, another great reason to brave the cold and head down to Kreuzberg’s steamiest basement!

Quarion’s december chart

Oh yeah, here we go again: another round of honest and uncensored charts from yours truly, Q-chan! As usual, a lot of different music is featured in my selection so I hope that it will inspire you to dig a little deeper…

Rufus & Chaka – Masterjam (LP – 1979) – MCA: Seems like I’m having a little fixation with everything that involved the pairing of producer Quincy Jones and writer Rod Temperton in the late 70’s/early 80’s…these two legends had a  chemistry that was seldom matched in showbiz. Add the slick groove of the Rufus band with the vocal acrobatics of Chaka Khan and you come up with “Masterjam”, another perfect Funk/pop album. My song-writing partner Jules Etienne knows how hooked I am on “Live In Me”…

KiNK – Trevoga – Undertones: This is off his “Psyche Funk EP” and it’s a monster. A very raw track that blurs the boundaries between House, Hip-Hop, Dubstep and Drum n’ Bass, thanks to its prominent old-school breakbeat. From what I heard of his upcoming tracks, you can expect much more madness from KiNK.

Session Victim – The Keyboarder – Delusions Of Grandeur: The Hamburg-Berlin connection is once again in full swing on this cut-up funk masterpiece due out in a few weeks on Jimpster’s label. The groove is undeniable and the disco strings are catchy as hell !

Sigha – Rawww – Hot Flush 2: This is exactly the sort of hybrid track I knew somebody would come up with : a slowed-down dubstep tune that fits in any House or Techno set. The production is so heavy that you’ll feel the whole dancefloor shaking. Continue reading “Quarion’s december chart”

Retreat Label Party – Edelweiss, Berlin

We’ve decided to start 2010 with a little disco flavour: Ireland’s mighty Mano Le Tough and Berlin’s own Elie Eidelman (aka DJ Humus) will be playing with us in Kreuzberg’s most soulful cave. Mano has been releasing disco-tinged gems on Prins Thomas’ Internasjonal and Tensnake’s Mirau imprints, so this should give you a good idea of how talented the man is!

Our second guest has been a regular in some of Berlin’s most prestigious clubs and is now organizing the successful “Jackoff” parties with co-conspirator John Osbourn. Elie has also just released his groovy debut 12″ in collaboration with Dekay on Dirt Crew Recordings.

Last but not least, Retreat’s own Quarion will provide the dancers with some appetizing Boogie and sloooow House in order to get the party started!

Miss at your own risk!

Autumn Madness

DSCN6121bw
This was actually taken in London

It’s going to be my fourth winter here in Berlin, but I still can’t get used to the following natural phenomena: how fast the sun is setting  between 4 and 5 in the afternoon. It’s almost as if you look out the window, write some nonsense in 140 characters and when you look out again, bam, darkness crept in… Continue reading “Autumn Madness”

RTR Reels 01 – Hauke Freer “fried and then basted” mix

RTR_reels-01Starting off our Reels series is Hauke Freer, better known as one half of Session Victim and co-owner of the vinyl-only label you love to love. Hauke recorded a 3-decks Funk assault with an approach that is similar to his sample-based production: quick changes, elements of surprise and an indestructible groove. Moving easily between US classics (Moodymann and John Tejada) and current european flavors (music from Firecracker or Millions of Moments), Hauke’s “fried and then basted” mix will make you bounce for 30 mins straight!

Reels

RTR_reelslogoA musician is someone who has been moved by other people’s work and has been able to synthesize both his influences and his own talent in order to create something special. At Retreat, each musician can only express himself one release at a time and we sometimes feel that 15 mins can be too restrictive. That’s why we’ve decided to set up Reels, a platform that will showcase Retreat’s artists and supporters via exclusive DJ mixes, live sets or any audio material that is close to their soul. We promise there will be a lot of surprises!