Going deep

Whatever about the weather, it looks like it’s going to be a long, deep summer: apart from Larry Heard’s ‘comeback’ track (I got enough flak for dissing it, so let’s move on!), Kerri Chandler and Dennis Ferrer’s releases are being picked up on by all kinds of DJs, and even arch-minimalists Mobilee are launching a housey sub-label, Leena - which was referred to in the ‘Water Cooler Moments’; props to Romo for revealing who I was talking about. Then there’s the Diynamic label, who look likely to score a big hit with the new Solomun & Stimming release, the ongoing popularity of Redshape, as well as Sebo K’s Lil Louis-like ‘Transit’ due out on Get Physical. In fairness, Sebo has form: a blatant supporter of deepness from the get-go, check his ‘Horizons’ release on Mobilee if you’re not convinced.
This resurgence in all things deep and house-based suggests that either electronic music audiences are fickle in their listening habits, but the more obvious explanation is that, like all forms of music, ‘going deep’ is just a cyclical occurrence. It shouldn’t come as a surprise; my ears can only deal with a finite amount of stripped back techno and I’m not alone: most people are sick of hearing minimal all night, and the some of the best mixes this year  - Jamie Jones, Steve Bug, Loco Dice and Dixon - have been  unashamedly deep affairs. Having recently dug out a ten-year-old Jesper Dahlback EP as The Persuader for re-evaluation, what becomes clear is that the added bonus of this new found love of all things deep is that, combined with modern techno production techniques, it make for a potently seductive soundtrack…

Comments

[Ronan]

still reckon some of the deep stuff is a bit boring or pointlessly regressive

eg sebo k's martin landsky remix, is generic enough and sounds like something off a lounge compilation. that's just one example.

but once there's a bit of dub or weirdness remaining that's always a little more interesting, for me anyway.

[Brophy]

That remix of landsky is the weakest thing he has done...his other stuff is great... like every 'genre' there's good and bad

[Ronan]

yeah mostly I love his stuff, think that "horizons" one was the first one I heard and since then it's been all good pretty much.

[Scott]

I would add Ame to your list of deep house. When I first heard their Resident Advisor podcast, I realized that that I had been wrong to dismiss deep house as cheesey and trite (although Where We At does fit into that category despite its outstanding groove). One thing though: is it just me, or does a lot of deep house seem just a little too repetative? Deep house all too frequently rides that house groove pocket a little too long and a little too hard. I see the future as deep house somehow meeting and reconciling with minimal's ever-mutating, constant, minute variations. Are we headed for deep minimal?

[mohson iqbal]

with all ears that have heard thousands of mixes,. 12s, cds and comp's, the older heads nodding towards Mr Fingers, Ron Trent,. Osunlade etc understand this move towards this 'less obvious is more' move towards deep house with production, people who didnt explore this in there younger years wont get it......but im loving the beats by heads, like Plasmik, Ron Trent, Larry Heard etc.......

Sebo for me is consistant and shows his inspirations of house music back then!

[tom/pipecock]

i consider myself something of a house deejay, but most "deep house" is complete trash. obviously i dig that larry heard, and some of the recent kerri chandler (not the one on deeply rooted house though), but for the most part the people who play "deep house" bore me just as much as the people who play "mnml" or "electro house" or whatever. people need to just start playing and listening to good music. all good house and all good techno are damn near the exact same music.

and for the person who mentioned "deep minimal", have you not been listening to Omar-S or Theo Parrish or Malik Pittman? those guys have been doing pretty much exactly that for years but they just call it house music because thats what it is. the ideas of ron trent, dan bell, etc have never gone away. check new records by Patrice Scott, New World Aquarium, etc. if these sounds are indeed going to be revived on a popular scale, im going to be very irritated if the people who never let it go dont get their props.

[Ronan]

do you enjoy being irritated?