This 6-track, limited edition vinyl sampler is absolutely suberb. It's a test press double-pack that includes a "Blaze" vinyl, as well as a "Claussell" vinyl. On the Blaze vinyl, three pieces aree showcased, including a stunning new stomper by Alexander Hope/Josh Milan, entitled, "Big Mistake". It's a vintage Blaze vocal offering!! We also find a beautiful instrumental piece by Ian Friday ("Renewal"), as well as the Kenny Carvajal and John Pierce collaboration on "My Words", which was originally released and licensed from Phuture Sole. On the 2nd vinyl (Joe Claussell), the stand-out track is Mental Remedy's "Obatala", which was NEVER officially released until now. It's a wild, organ-driven song that had been getting all kinds of positive feedback and inquiries for the past few years on house music message boards worldwide. This occured after top jock Timmy Regisford (Club Shelter, NYC) had played it on several occasions during his weekly stints. This sent the pundits into a heated frenzy, who then subsequently went online to try and decipher who did the song and when it was coming out, hence creating a massive buzz. Unfortunately, the song was also leaked driving Joe's decision to include it in this EP.

Of note, is also Chris Brann's gorgeous piece, "Journey to The Centre", which had originally been released on his 1997 LP, "Deep Fall" on Peacefrog Records. This song, which he had produced during his Wamdue Kids era is quintessential deep-house music. It is presented on this sampler in its original LP version.

Again, this is a limited edition test sampler, and should not be passed on. Get it before it's too late!!!



Artist: GENETIX
Title: "Love Ya Life"
Label: Eargasmic Recordings
Format: vinyl

Toronto's Gene King has released various records during his production career, including for KMS, Slip N Slide, & Warner Bros, to name a few. His last effort under the Genetix emblem resulted in the very UBP-esque "Love Will Fix It" featruring the big vocals of Michael Dunston on UltraSound Recordings, a personal fave of mine that still gets regular play in my sets.

On this 4th Eargasmic Recordings release (a label that made a name for itself by releasing the monster "Archives EP" by Glenn Underground), Gene uses his Genetix guise once again to drop the moody "Love Ya Life", a fresh dose of nicely produced and inspiring deep house music. It features a main mix, instrumental and reprise. The take-home message is simple yet so true: "live your life, love ya life!!" Will be looking out for more productions by Genetix.



Artist: DEMARKUS LEWIS
Title: "Prodigal Son EP"
Label: Vista Recordings
Format: vinyl

A sub-division of Chicago's Large Music, Vista Recordings releases a driving deep house thumper by Dallas, Texas' very own, Demarkus Lewis, who has been making noise for quite some time now, and who is now considered as a staple producer in this very genre, having released other works on Flat & Round, Brique Rouge, Aesoteric, Moods & Grooves, Grab, and Nordic trax amongst others.

Following up the "Hustler EP", this sophomore release offers three tracks. "Fly To Heaven" is a dubbish peak-hour floor-shaker, while "Coming Back 4 Love", which is my personal fave, is a tad bit moodier. The latter is also a dubby track that is very reminiscent of a typical Alton Miller offering. Nicely done indeed. The last song on this EP, the acid-ish"Denominator" is my least favourite, but may still get a dancefloor moving. All-in-all, this is well worth the coin, and it showcases the vintage Demarkus Lewis sound.



Artist: EDDIE MATOS
Title: "My Puerto Rican Roots EP"
Label: Large Music
Format: vinyl

Eddie Matos, who is well known for having spawned the now classic and extraordianry "New York Style"(Spiritual Life Music) with long-time partner John Mateo (under the Mateo & Matos guise), releases this beautiful, latin-flavoured four-track EP that is absolutely full of life, rhythm and passion.

Having grown up on the Lower East Side of NYC, Eddie was influenced heavily by Cuban Jazz, Merengue and of course Salsa music. He explores and incorporates all of the aforementioned genres into his typical house style. On side A, we get into the horn-driven "Latinism", an uptempo and sure to be crowd-pleaser, as well as my personal favourite, "Oye La Musica", which offers inspiring piano and percussive work. On the flip-side, we dive into the mean, yet elegant "Relax Your Mind", of which a main mix and a dub version are offered. Altogether, this is a very sweet and impressive outing by Eddie Matos.



Artist: PHIL HOOTON f/ TESTAMENT
Title: "King of Kings"
Label: SuSu
Format: vinyl

This is definitely one of my favourite songs recently. It should definitely be classified under gospel-inspired house music. Phil Hooton's up-tempo production (and co-production by Ron Carroll) is backed by the wonderful vocal trio of Testament, who literally lift every voice! Ron also provides some spoken-word lyrics as well. Of note, is Terry Hunter's imperial remix ("Terry Hunter's Soulful Praise mix") on the B-side, which is truly inspirational and full of keys, sax and guitar. And a whole lot of singin and praisin!!!!!!



Review by Michael Terzian sinister@deepvibes.org