Some producers' sound can be defined in a word or two. Dubfire? "Bass, kick." David Guetta? "Commercial shit." EDX? "Repetitive prog." Luckily, some producers swing between specific techniques from track to track while staying comfortably within the boundaries of their own personal sound. German DJ/producer Martin Stimming undoubtedly falls under the "tech house" catchall. However, his specific techniques and personal stylings warrant a more specific definition of his sound: "funky, bouncing tech house with emphasis on the funk." Yeah, it's a little more than two words, but Stimming's sound is something all his own, and it's something I've grown to love in recent weeks.
The first track I'd like to highlight from Stimming defines his native Hamburg sound and style perfectly in its name: "Funkworm". That's exactly what this sounds like. A murky, writhing, wriggling, funked-out worm of a guitar riff plonks its way into your head and stays firmly anchored under equally dirty, gritty drums that practically reek of wet dirt and freshly cut grass. The kick and gravel clap practically drive you headfirst into the ground, giving this cut a very earthen feel that perfectly compliments the annelid on which the song is based.
Stimming - Funkworm
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This next cut finds Stimming reveling in hissing synths that claw at your feet for the first minute or so under scarce, intermittent hi-hats and snares that gather build under a solid kick pulse. The glib vocal line says it all: "Just say hey, do you want to funk with me?" The jazzy hi-hats and claps solidify the structure while the synths percolate underneath, warming the entire track while licking at its feet for a good minute or so again. This is signature Stimming we're hearing now. A groove that warms, jars, and shakes you all over. The synth line skates over the vocal line which almost sounds like a joke, but there is no denying the heavy, pulsating bodytrap Stimming has set here. Not his best, but "Funk With Me" is another quality Stimming outing that definitely goes for the body over the mind.
Stimming - Funk With Me
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"Magdalena" finds Stimming teaming up with fellow Hamburg producer Einmusik for a much more straightforward, techier approach to tech house. An unrelenting bassline starts things up with a hint of that sexy, grooving Stimming rhythm hinted throughout the track. However, the groove is traded in favor a body-rocking synth line and more progressive sensibilities. The groove is still present, but it's definitely in the background here. But what I love about this track so much has to be that same synth line. This is a much more immediately danceable track that rolling right off your arms and back with a palpable shake. About three and a half minutes in, the menacing vacuum of a synth takes over and the rhythm kicks into overdrive. There is no way you can't move your body to this. Absolutely unrelenting. While other Stimming tracks usually kick back and let things build slowly, this cut definitely mans the helm and drives things straight into the proggier reaches of tech house, but that's perfectly fine. The results are massive, rhythmic on a level that progressive house rarely attains, and completely danceable with a killer, soul-sucking synth line that damn near forces you to get on your feet and dance.
Stimming & Einmusik - Magdalena
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This last cut returns Stimming to what he does best, and along with fellow German/Diynamic producer H.O.S.H., Stimming crafts a spacey, dubbed-out mind and body trip that you won't soon forget. Things start off in the outer reaches of space. A humming kick/to combo create the structure while a barely-there synth chimes in every measure to signal something is still happening and that this track hasn't all but flatlined. Every so often a few claps and a sinister hiss of a maraca shake foreshadow something more...but what? At 1:40, we find out. Ahh, glory. That warm, inviting Stimming drum sound. Wounded horns penetrate the background on occasion, and soon peak in an eerie, trainwreck of a climax that sounds...wonderful. Hi-hats, claps, and that bloody catchy maraca shake...the rhythm is undeniable here! It's classic Stimming, and that same whining, groaning synth line twists and turns through the...oh goddamn it. It's a train. Modulated and probably beaten senseless, this train winds up a cold, lonely mountain of sound, once in a while tooting to let us know it's almost approached the station. And then...what a breakdown. A bluesy organ all of a sudden breaks the clouds and shines down in all its melancholy glory to signal another "what-the-fuck" moment in a track full of them. But up against those Stimming drums...god does it sound good. Then everything drops out, only the claps and the hi-hats sounding off as the train's whistle mournfully toots off in the distance. "Radar" has holy crap written all over it, but it's a wonderfully unexpected track that pleases, if not with a crease on the forehead for the whole time you're listening to it.
Stimming & H.O.S.H. - Radar
That's all for now friends. Next time I plan to check out one of my favorite labels and mine it for some gems to share with all of you! Until then, keep on listening.
-NL
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