- A best-in-class compilation documenting one of dance music's grooviest corners.
- I tend to think that the best first volumes craft a story where one hadn't existed before, providing a primer to a scene or a sound (e.g. Durban's gqom scene or New York's newest techno cohort). Gene On Earth's The Sound of Limo provides this narrative with finesse, turning in a comprehensive introduction to one of the freshest sounds coming out of the Berlin underground. Describing what exactly this sound is, however, is a bit trickier. All the artists represented on this comp are dedicated diggers, drawn to the dusty, YouTube-free corners of Discogs before channeling that lost techno ephemera back into their productions. The '90s is a constant throughline, particularly the squiggly low-end of early British tech house, but you can also hear the loopy and skeletal (yet undeniably funky) minimal techno of Robert Hood and Daniel Bell and its antecedents, all the way to early '00s microhouse.
This hybrid update of minimal and tech house—which feels both contemporary and nostalgic with its constant sprinklings of video game bleeps and broad melodic flourishes—is certainly the dominant motif on the three discs on The Sound Of Limo. This is a sound Gene On Earth has been pushing in his own releases and DJ sets. We hear it on his contribution "BHDD (Brown House Double Decker)," but also on standouts like James Andrew's "Fantastic Bombastic," the slowed swagger of DJ Pipe's "Mini Abstract" and the breakbeat badness of Liquid Earth's "Yorbalinda Breaks." All these tracks are quirky, but deep enough to transcend their bells-and-whistles.
What we get on Sound Of Limo isn't so much a single sound as a single focal point: groove. From the moment you hit play on Sweely's "Shut Up And Stay Home," it's clear that this compilation wants to build deep, entrenched rhythms. The rising Parisian producer's swung, crunchy drums duet with techy bleeps and a synth line hot enough to justify another coat of SPF. Likewise Huerta's "Steve's Limo Track" is loopy and minimal in composition, reminiscent of vintage Perlon, but the bassline, chords and "feel the magic" vocal are smooth as butter from Terry Francis's kitchen. Noiro, on the other hand, tips the scales in the other direction with one of the record's silliest tracks. "Achtung, Achtung!" moves across a series of earworm melodies peaking with a truly outrageous organ solo.
The Sound Of Limo incorporates these niche sonic references into tracks that feel unexpected. Voodoos & Taboos' "Golden Age," for example, starts out as one of the record's heaviest techno tracks before a piano break transports us to an orbital rave circa 1989. My other two favorites are even further afield. Sugar Free has quickly risen up the ranks as one of the most sought-after DJs in this corner of the scene, but "Hazme Son" is only her second foray into production. This toasty burner presents a delightfully dubbed-out take on tech house. Roza Terenzi's "Snow Dive," meanwhile, builds on the demonic, after-hours trance she has been crafting, pitched way down into the deepest darkness.
While these tracks might feel like outliers, they share an aesthetic and emotional palette with the rest. Just listen to Gene On Earth's seamless mix of all 14 tracks. What I love about that mix especially is the plethora of enthusiastic, encouraging comments. This, to me, is testament to the incredible potential of both the sound and scene being documented here. Gene On Earth makes the case that this is a big tent affair, indicative of a community. Maybe it's his cigar-smoking avatar or his Instagram gardening videos, but I'll be the first to admit it: I'd like to be friends with him and just about everyone else involved with this jubilant and fresh homage to '90s dance music.
Tracklist01. Sweely - Shut Up And Stay Home
02. James Andrew - Fantastic Bombastic
03. Huerta - Steve’s Limo Track
04. Anderson - Freak Sound
05. Gene On Earth - Brown House Double Decker (BHDD)
06. Liquid Earth - Yorbalinda Breaks
07. Voodoos & Taboos - Golden Age
08. Sugar Free - Hazme Soñar
09. Roza Terenzi - Snow Dive
10. Dyed Soundorom - Up There
11. DJ Pipe - Mini Abstract
12. Noiro - Achtung, Achtung!
13. Taslo Valve - High Sprockets
14. Gene On Earth - Frog Magic (Digital Only)