#20 Feat. Staff Picks in Indie Dance

Frankfurts Max Buchalik is in the early phases of his production career but has many years of experience throwing parties in his hometown, where he is a pioneering force. With his deep understanding of dancefloor dynamics, he now pairs his love of the 80s with rich sound designs on his debut release for Brooklyn-based imprint Melodize. Opener Higher State is a bright house cut awash with sugary, pixelated chords and twinkling pads. Its retro-future charms and colourful, uplifting arps all serve to get hands in the air and heads amongst the stars. Remixer Venice Arms is an alias of accomplished dark disco don Curses, who has long been a fixture in the Berlin underground. His take on Higher State is a snappy proto-house cut with 80s synth work and natty chords that are busy and full of fun. The second original Midnight Passion is another vibrant track with throwback synth progressions and retro textures. The melodies shine bright as they rain down over snappy drums and melancholic leads packed with exciting emotions. Remixing this one is Italian DJ, producer and label owner Fabrizio Mammarella, who has a fine discography that takes in releases on DFA, Permanent Vacation and Correspondant, as well as his own Slow Motion Music, Wrong Era Records and Emet. His lively disco-house version is lit up with shiny chords, chattery percussive patterns, woodpecker-like hits, and sustained chords that will dazzle the dance floor.

Max Buchalik

#80 Feat. Staff Picks in Electro (Classic / Detroit / Modern)

German artist Martin Matiskes start in music came at the hands of the legendary DJ Hell, who invited him to his first DJ gigs in 1999 at one of his Gigolo label nights in Munich. His own productions, inspired by early electronic pioneers like Kraftwerk and Jean Michel Jarre, soon followed on International Deejay Gigolo Records, as have many more since on Frustrated Funk, Bordello A Parigi, Moustache Records and Central Processing Unit. Matiske has had high-profile support from the likes of Dave Clarke and Helena Hauff, and this new EP for Brooklyn-based label Melodize is another one that will surely find wide acclaim. The fantastic Moments opens up with ice-cold snares and drum sounds that are backlit by celestial pads as retro-future synth work brings colour to this catchy and optimistic proto-electro groove. Moments then gets a sublime remix treatment from the prolific and endlessly creative Legowelt, who has explored every different style possible under a myriad of aliases on a range of cult labels like Clone, LIES and Crème Organization. The Dutch maestros superb take on Moments is an astral electro workout with killer acidic lines, squelchy bass and daubs of psychedelic colour. On the flip, Dimensional Space Travel is another cinematic electro journey that taps into the motorik tick of Kraftwerk with distinctive melodic phrasings, forming a playful call-and-response with the background chords. Closer Analogue Being taps into early electro with lovably tinny rhythms and sugary, pixelated analogue chords that bring a sense of nostalgia and ruefulness.

Martin Matiske