DJS: MOST CHARTED - DEEP HOUSE - MOST CHARTED IN NOVEMBER 2014

Review: Those who heard Harvey Sutherland's excellent debut EP for Echovolt, Edges EP, will be familiar with his trademark sound - a toasty, analogue style take on deep house marked out by jazz-funk chord progressions, warming synthesizer melodies and shuffling grooves. He changes the script a little on this EP for Voyage Recordings, though there's still plenty of seductive deep house to enjoy (most notably opener "Oscillate" and the Inskwel style, boogie-influenced loveliness of "Bamboo"). Where the EP really comes into its own, though, is when he tries a different tack. "Old Wars" sounds like Moon B's electrofunk explorations wrapped in a snuggly duvet, while "Close Quarters" successfully fixes Herbie Hancock style synth melodies to loose, cymbal heavy beats.

Review: DJ Qu - AKA New York-based producer Ramon LIsandro Quezada - has been doing his thing since the mid-2000s, delivering spacey deep house cuts that join the dots between the soulful warmth of Glenn Underground and the far-sighted futurism of Detroit techno. There's more stargazing fare to be found on his latest EP. "Raw 7" has a real sci-fi feel, with alien synths melodies and outer-space stabs riding a powerful, cymbal-driven rhythm. "Untitled (High Life)" is a little more relaxed, with picturesque electronic melodies complimenting a dense, afro-influenced house groove. It's floor-friendly enough, but positive enough for home listening, too. Finally, "Soma" is thrillingly deep, transporting listeners to the far reaches of the galaxy via endless chords and shuffling percussion.

Review: Given the quality of Session Victim's 2012 debut album, Haunted House of House, expectations are naturally high for this follow-up. Like its' predecessor, See You When You Get There takes a widescreen approach to deep house, with the German duo drawing on a myriad of influences, from jazz ("Hey Stranger"), soundtracks ("Crystal Maze") and evocative downtempo beats (the impeccable title track), to Atmosfear-ish jazz-funk ("The Most Beautiful Divorce In The World") and, most notably, classic Balearica (see the druggy pop of "Hyuwee" and deliciously slow "EOS Place". Best of all, though, is "Never Forget", a glorious blues-house epic laden with smoky vocal samples and thrilling piano motifs.

Review: Having previously only appeared on WotNot Music in the past couple of years, K15 now slides over to Wild Oats to deliver a wholly appropriate slab of fluttering house romanticism rich in Detroit dreams and Chicago cheekiness, wherever the music might have been conceived. The cheekiness is no doubt most noticeable on "GWRH" with its homage to "Gypsy Woman", turning it into a fluttering Latino house jam, but before that comes the plush bump n rub of "The Story Of Her Life". "Insecurities" gets into a sexier kind of deep house funk, which "Gratitude" dutifully carries on until "Yellow" can round the record out with some largely beatless piano business.

Review: A long and distinguished recording career for the always faithful Norm Talley has been lacking something Tsuba shapes until now, so kudos to Kev Griffiths for coaxing three drops of powerfully deep and danceable house from the Westside Detroiter. Each track here offers a different mood with A-side cut "Mid-Nite Madd-Ness" the peak time burner with classically Detroit house styled cymbal clashes cuing breakdowns, while vamping chords ascend and descend. "Holiday" is the warmer summer house jam with woozy Rhodes on loop, while "One Track Mind" is deep and rhythmic with a sultry vocal to boot.

Review: Given that this is the first album from the great Theo Parrish since 2007, it's unsurprising interest in American Intelligence has rocketed over the course of the year as Sound Signature left a trail of hints. Happily, American Intelligence is a fine album; deep and woozy in parts, undeniably soulful, shot through with jazz influences and full to bursting with killer cuts. By now, everyone should know the brilliant "Footwork" single (arguably one of the records of 2014); soon, clubs will swing to the off-kilter dancefloor jazz of "Make No War", the 21st century broken house of the epic "Fallen Funk" and the decidedly odd - but brilliant - "Helmut Lampshade".

Review: Asok's Scenery imprint continues to go from strength to strength, with the boss man following up Bantam Lions' recent Recollections EP with a single of his own. "Hunter" is undoubtedly the Liverpool-based producer's strongest track yet, with woozy, soft-focus chords and alien electronics riding a dusty, analogue-rich groove. As with much of the label's recent output, there are distinct hints of Mood Hut, Future Times and Mister Saturday Night. Experienced producer Versalife reworks the title track, turning it into a blissful chunk of Drexciya-style electro. Flip to the B-side for "Cabal", an ultra-deep and occasionally discordant concoction, and the fuzzy, Detroit-influenced bounce of "Millennium 2.2".

Review: The sad passing of Frankie Knuckles earlier this year hit many people hard, not least fellow Chicago legend Ron Trent. The Prescription Records co-founder and all-round deep house legend has previously spoken about how he owes his career to the one-time Warehouse resident and here pays tribute to him in musical form. "7th Heaven" is as warm, loving and emotion-rich as you'd expect, with Trent layering his trademark keys, pads and melodies over a classic, Knuckles-style groove. It's the kind of wide-eyed loveliness that Knuckles himself would have been proud of making, and there's no greater tribute than that.

Review: Everyone loves a good story behind a record and few come with a more interesting narrative than this debut (and perhaps only) Talamanca System 12". The story goes that Gerd Janson and Phil Lauer were enjoying the Ibizan hospitality of International Feel boss Mark Barrot last summer, to the extent they were both gifted his unused Studio Electronics 'Boomstar 303' synth. Eager to repay such a lavish favour, Janson offered to remix a track Barrot was working on, an offer which eventually resulted in this 12". Four versions of "Balanzat" feature here, with an original, acid reflux, Tuff City Kids refix and ambient reprise to choose from. If this is the only Talamanca System 12" we will see it's a shame as it's a mighty fine addition to the International Feel discography.

Review: Offering up a pair of on-point contemporary house reworks of Hercules & Love Affair, the closely-affiliated Mr Intl label has done well to choose Brawther and Detroit Swindle for remix duties, pairing two very distinct but utterly heavyweight versions on wax. Brawther is in particularly fiery form with his dub of "My Offence", turning the swing up high and letting a booming set of drums thump out the message while a chunky bass line rounds the proceedings out with deadly precision. Detroit Swindle go for a more euphoric, soul-stirring approach drenched in their signature washy synths and lots of cheery melodies, providing the light foil to Brathwer's dark and moody take.

Review: For those not familiar with Beste Modus, they're a collective of DJs and producers based in East Berlin consisting of Diego Krause, Cinthie, stevn.aint.leavn, Ed Herbst and Albert Vogt. With influences ranging from techno to funk, their parties are diverse affairs; something that carries over to their label, which here hits its fourth hand-stamped release. stevn.aint.leavn is up first with "precious", a chunky piece of proper tech house with all the depth and melody needed to stand out; Cinthie's "For The Ladies" is a more bumping affair with subtle hints of Detroit; Ed Herbst takes things into the smaller hours with the midnight textures of "Urban Bias", and Diego Krause rounds things off with the raw, stripped back beats and breathy vocal of "Unite".

Review: These days, Detroit deep house veteran Keith Worthy can't seem to decide whether to use his given name or the alternative Lamar alias. Here he's in full K-Worthy mode, delivering a belated debut album chock full of sci-fi influenced deep house, Motor City dancefloor soul and evocative, heavily electronic club jams. Worthy is a fine producer with a great knack for balancing the demands of the dancefloor with his love of atmosphere, texture and melody. This trait courses through the heat of K Dub Music, which simply ripples with quality from start to finish. Highlights are plentiful, from the deep, melodious techno warmth of "Karma ($ of NC Mix)", to the off-kilter rhythms, sci-fi sounds and fizzing cymbals of "Deeptroit".

Review: Sound Theory is a brand new label from Exchange Place DJ/producer Nicuri. Here, he handles B-side duties, with pal Joey Anderson stretching out on the A. Given the standard of his debut LP, it's little surprise to see Anderson impressing here, with the deep acid of "My Cassetts" providing a pungent blend of undulating 303 lines, sparse pads, occasional starburst electronics and cymbal-driven percussion. Nicuri toughens things up on the flip, dropping a pair of tracks that revolve around heavily compressed drums, hustling rhythms and vintage techno electronics. Choose between the early R&S-meets-Transmat feel of "Late Last Night" and the trippy, deep space vibes of "Behind Many Faces".

Review: Given the quality of his Synthetes trilogy on Don't Be Afraid the lack of new material from Nick "Mr Beatnick" Wilson in 2014 has been incredibly frustrating. This return, then, is more than welcome. This time he's up on London label TIEF with a typically attractive, soul-flecked four-tracker. Opener "Marshmallows" pits gooey chords and typically loose deep house percussion against picturesque melodies and a subtle acid line. "Ice Cream Strut" is similarly gorgeous, though the beats have a broken feel and the snares doff a cap to his hip-hop past (for the confirmed househeads, there's a solid Francis Inferno Orchestra remix included). Finally, "Oxytonin" is a bubbling foray into melodious, Detroit-influenced deep house soaked through with autumnal sunshine.

Review: Following recent outings on Sounds of the Universe, Deep Explorer and his own Deepblak imprint, Amon Bazile brings his brand of intergalactic deep house to Japan's Sound of Speed label. Happily, he's in fine form from the word go, with opener "Wind Walkers" layering spacey chords and bubbling melodies over an undulating, Motor City-influenced groove. "The Pursuit" is more cinematic and widescreen in approach, with drifting chords and disembodied vocal samples ushering in a yearning, analogue-sounding vision of deep house. Finally "Rahk" impresses with its combination of cheery keys, positive chords and loose, off-kilter house rhythms. Impressive stuff, all told.

Review: Having previously impressed on Argot and Home Taping Is Killing Music with her blends of evocative deep house and floor-friendly Chicago rhythms, The Black Madonna tries a different approach on this debut for the recently launched Night Owl Diner label. You could certainly describe both tracks as "Balearic", and there's a real air of wide-eyed positivity about the tumbling melodies, swirling synth-strings and mid-80s pop production of head-nodding deep house cut "Stay". It's pretty darn tasty, all told. Almost as good is "Requiem", which appears to be built around a loop lifted from Cherrelle and Alexander O'Neal's "Saturday Love" (with, of course, additional synths and tuneful electronics).

Review: There's something particularly fitting about the title of Life Recorder's latest 12, his follow-up to the well-received Hope In The Soul EP on Soul Print. As the title suggests, "90 State" sounds like it was heavily influenced by vintage 808 State, and "Pacific State" in particular. The analogue-sounding beats, spine tingling electronics, melodies and wide-eyed chords all recall the rave-era classic, making "90 State" a thoroughly enjoyable, Balearic house gem. The remix package is pretty tasty too. Stojche provides a tougher, kick-heavy techno take - complete with relentless drum machine handclaps and drawn-out cymbals - while Vidinovski opts for a woozier, dreamier deep house feel. Lovely stuff.

Review: REPRESS ALERT: Slow Town Records has really picked up the pace this year, delivering essential 12" singles from Riccio and QX-I, amongst others. Here, they round of 2014 with an EP of positively edible deep house from Fouk man Hans Peeman. In typical Peeman fashion, there's plenty of soul to the liquid beats and rich chords of "Prologue", while "Monologue" is an attractive saunter through classic Detroit deep house with the restless energy of a Chicago production. MR K-S remixes the title track, delivering a heavily percussive version that sounds like a plea to head towards the dancefloor, pronto. A touch darker and altogether heavier, it offers an excellent alternative to Peeman's eyes-wide-shut original.

Review: REPRESS ALERT: For those turned on by the far-sighted, sci-fi inspired sounds of Detroit deep house and techno, this EP from Michael Zucker's Finale Underground imprint (an offshoot of his Finale Sessions label) should be an essential purchase. With the likes of Patrice Scott, Keith Worthy and Luke Hess involved, you'd expect the quality threshold to be high. It is, of course, resulting in a quartet of killer tracks. Hess' hypnotic techno jam "Tolox" is a definite highlight, though it pales in comparison to the analogue futurism of Keith Worthy's brilliant "Cyclops". Best of all, though, is Scott's "Journey Into The Unknown", which bobs, weaves, bubbles and spits to the rush-inducing deep house sound of undulating synthesizer melodies and classic, Transmat-style Motor City rhythms.

Review: No 27 in the Wolf Music discography sees the Lupine London label look to the Lowlands (try saying that 5 times in a row) and introduce their network to the talents of Dutch duo Homework. As Homework, Amsterdam-based Tom Waist and Zip Stolk have racked up a clutch of releases for Shir Khan's Exploited label over the past four years and their brand of classicist Chicago house is most definitely high grade Wolf material. It's hard to describe the three Homework cuts here as anything other than luscious with "Time & Time" a definite highlight thanks to the vocal sample flip. Includes a rather dusty remix from Wolf Music regular Greymatter.

Review: Back for one more night with Hardmoon London. Fresh new, gritty, mind-altering tracks by way of Steve Murphy and the eight armed, cephalopod mollusc, DJ Octopus. The Duo are bringing their ecstatic energy for an exciting break in the the label. Definitely count on some serious hardware action to create the finest dance-floor melters. Encapsulating only the cream of the contemporary electronic sounds with the beautiful renditions of classic house just laced with fat sweltering bass and heavily distorted seizure inducing melodies.

Review: Zomarec and 12Records founder Alessandro Pasini is having a productive year, having previously released strong singles with Melchior Sultana and Robert Owners. The Girl Who Hates 909 Kick EP is a decidedly deep and warm affair, with vintage sounding synthesizers, grooves and basslines the order of the day. Amongst the chunky, retro-futirist grooves and eyes-wide-shut melodies (see "What Is Love" and the excellent "The Warning") you'll find a pair of sublime, Simoncino-ish moments of clarity. There's "We Need Raw", a dreamy study in bubbling analogue-sounding deep house, and "Schlagsahne", a blissful combination of drifting melodies and unfussy, oven-hot grooves.

Review: This deluxe 12" and 10" package is the first in what Detroit Swindle promise will be an annual occurrence - a "family remix EP", where members of the Heist Recordings roster rework label releases from the previous 12 months. It's a neat idea, and one that's undoubtedly resulted in some killer material. The Organ Grinder's surging, heavily percussive rework of Frits Wentik's "Schrewd" is particularly heavy, though it is Max Graef's loose, soulful, groovy and sample-heavy reinterpretation of Detroit Swindle's "The Break Up" is probably the standout. That said, there's plenty to cheer elsewhere, not least Nachtbraker's cowbell-laden, acid house-meets-nu-disco version of Max Graef and Andy Hart's "Jungle".

Review: Chez Damier's Golden Child is back with 3 brand new slammin tracks straight out of the deep depths of dance music. This special limited edition release shelters some of Brawther's most innovative and forward thinking music, yet retaining that timeless and classic touch that the frenchman is known for. While the A side's "Come Inside" draws you into it's realm and pounds you harder and deeper, the B side's "VXVXVX" versions take you on a rotating journey inside brawther's mind. There will be no repress of this collector's edition so snap it while you can or cry like a baby.