Sander Kleinenberg ft. Ryan Starr // Chemically [This Is]
One of my few vague recollections from my days at Fabric was a peculiar scene on a particularly sweaty night. Craig Richards was playing some decidedly filthy tech house and I had just detached myself from the dance to survey the scene in front of me. The entire room had been gripped in a funky swagger, everyone synchronised in a rhythmic sway. Its a rare track that can command this sort of unison from a crowd, and hidden away on Sander Kleinenberg’s latest release, on his own This Is imprint, is the key to this particular lock.
Rene Amesz has stepped up to the plate to deliver a rump shaking hip house monster that is by far the cut of the release. While the low end is satisfyingly earthy, there is a breathy airiness meaning that this is a smiling eyes gazing over your fellow marchers moment, not a head down and frowns session. Every build and fill is tried and tested formula, however, as always, success is measured in the execution, and Amesz is executing better than a heaving man mountain, garbed in a black hood with eye holes, wielding an oversized meat cleaver inscribed with the name “Mister Choppy”.
Heading deeper is the Kraak and Smaak effort. Starting off promisingly with rising chords and disco sparkles, in the face of Amesz’s raw energy it feels like we are just one element short of sparking into a full cosmic disco crackle. Coming full circle to Kleinenberg’s original, which is about as far away from Kraak and Smaak’s planet deep as you can get. Bold, big room material with one of those brash one note synth hooks that feels like it has been overplayed even before you’ve come through your first listen. Sadly the kind of sound that leaves me so cold that I have to defrost my headphones.
Release Date: Out Now
Words: fourfourfun
