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My My - Fast Freeze = Playhouse boys My My turns up for the first track, a slow-burning, viscous little tech house bumper. An arpeggiated, fluttering synth line wiggles around amongst forlorn, somehow sensual groans and a light string section that paints a beautifully varied soundscape where, despite not much sound, a lot is going on. My My works their magic best when they're shoehorning detail in a minimalist work. This is wonderful microhouse (minimal house) and a great way to kick off a Cocoon Compilation.
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Cobblestone Jazz - W = Wagon Repair regulars Cobblestone Jazz burst out of the gate with a niggling little acid bassline and synths that seem to groan hopelessly from the pit the bassline has dragged them into. Hollow yelps jump out here and there, but it builds a churning, masterful rhythm that seems poised on the edge of slipping over into something greater at anyone moment. Soaring, heavenly pads soon enter the mix, building tension and atmosphere beautifully. Congas (?) thump in next, and what you soon have is a beautifully constructed piece of ambient minimal house, fraught with detail, ambiance, and rhythm that anchors it firmly on the early-morning dancefloor. A definite early highlight. That main ghostly vocal riff…it's quite addicting. Just saying.
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Chaim - Genesis = Genesis is an awful big term to use for your track. That being said, Chaim's 'Genesis' gets off to a typical tech houser start, humming, deep pads and a steady bassline before bringing in a goofy, plodding melody that sounds fairly out-of-place. Halfway in, the larger part of the melody staggers in, brushing up violently with some white noise that makes it waver and jar quite uncomfortably. Odd brushes and toms are brought in at this point, and by the end, what you've got is an interesting little tech house number on your hands. Much like a few of the tracks from Compilation F, however, the main problem is the main riff is neither catchy nor memorable. The rhythm and drum production are fine enough but without that crucial element, this is nearly seven minutes of tech house that really goes nowhere.
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Stephan Bodzin - Treibsand = German producer Stephan Bodzin, a fairly well-known name in the German scene, dusts off (literally) this deep, thunderous tech house cut that features a monstrous bassline, a rough-around-the-edges feel that suits it well, a liberal usage of sandy hi-hats and ominous hisses to good effect. A beautiful, gossamer pad is brought in to cover the whole affair in a glossy, almost progressive sheen. And let me tell you, it works. This reminds me of Pig & Dan's amazing remix of Beroshima's 'Horizon', a ghostly, thin progressive tune that got torn right down the seams to reveal the monster underneath. Although this track doesn't exactly have the most memorable of lines or elements, the atmosphere really draws you in, and the end result is a deep tech house cut that pleases with its snarling bassline and overall mood. Another early highlight; recommended.
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Tiefschwarz - Lionel = The German Get Physical boys open their track with a bouncing, whining synth that seems to deepen with each beat. Whooshes are here in plenty, building the foundation for a drop that gives the track a WHOLE lot more bounce, as minimal and holdback as it is. Tiefschwarz employ this bouncing mechanic ad nauseum, in my opinion, with glitched-out sound effects, plinks, and bleeps of all sorts into a minimal house track that could've been a bit more than it is right now. The drop works well, and on a giant system it'll work magic, but form there, the momentum is kind of lost, only near the end does the track really get ominous and start to go somewhere, but by then it's too late. Still recommended, but withhold judgment until the very end.
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Marcel Dettmann - Sepia 807 = Ostgut Ton player and MDR boss Marcel Dettmann layers his track right from the start with eerie pads and a heavy, mechanized computer mood. This is the skeletal minimal he is known for in full effect. Dark, robotic, and stripped-back, Dettmann rattles the cage a few times, but for the most part this is a subtle, subdued record for him: this be no 'Quicksand', friends. The melodic element is quite eerie and works well with the whole atmosphere: haunting, the faintest organic life-form within this tangled web of wires and bleeps and beeps. However, the line just ain't solid enough for the track. The atmosphere here weaves itself beautifully, and the production is A-grade, just like Dettmann usually makes, but the man has always had trouble with melodies and catchy bits. His best tracks make the atmosphere the catchy part, and that's when he shines. But here, his luster is decidedly, well, lackluster.
Marcel Dettmann - Sepia 807
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Aki Latvamäki - Tämä Tuli Järvestä = This right here is a very interesting track. A more metallic, underwater sound than last summer's 'Sea of Sand', this track pulses and ebbs and flows with the rhythm, like some kraken of the deep patiently waiting for the right moment to strike. The main melodic element is kind of catchy, but ti grows on you as the track progresses. An expertly crafted bit of tech house that hides much depth and detail without sounding too 'full'. The drop of the kick makes this a certified late-night track, a good builder. Also a great listen with headphones. Warped, dark, liquid, this is a unique track from, at least in my experience, a fairly unknown producer. Can't wait to see what Aki is releasing lately!
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Audion - Fire = Matthew Dear turns on the heat with his entry, 'Fire'. A bubbling, angry little track, 'Fire' features a slow build and some trancey chords that sound, honestly, odd, but they kind of work. They counterpoise the dark nature of the intro synths, in a faux-heavenly manner that darkens the track even more. The drum production here is expert, of course, and the rhythm that feels stripped-back, but it's enough to anchor the track and let the chords soar as more and more are poured on. Liberal use this is not. A sizzling tech house cut is what you get by the track's end, and a middle-of-the-road highlight for sure.
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Phil Kieran - I Think I'm A Monster = Cocoon regular Phil Kieran follows with a track that kicks off with a pulsating, radar-esque synth blip, while hi-hats patter lightly underneath it. A lonely, melancholy synth can be heard in the background, slowly rising into range. An equally forlorn, yet much darker, synth enters, creeping along slyly, unnoticed until it's smack in your eardrum. Kieran's melody is memorable for its creepy nature and semi-complexity. It's enough to get you to listen, but the effect is not lost WHILE you listen. A man's garbled cries mix with the synth line in a dark tone that recalls the track's very title. I love it when this happens. It's the very nature of the track that harkens back to the title; a creeping, uncertain number that builds in anxiety and fear before asking the question: am I really a monster? By 4:30 we have the answer: I am a monster. It's a dark, twisted take on tech house that does much in almost seven minutes, and while it's not very danceable, it's great for a headphone listen and more an appreciation of what it makes to produce this stuff. Metallic, deep, dark, yet somehow straight-forward, this is a great track and a wonderful follow-up to Dear's track.
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Jamie Jones - Harajuku = Crosstown Rebels and Freak n' Chic regular Jamie Jones lends his hand of deep house to his cut, 'Harajuku'. Deep, pulsating pads and a light maraca shake give the track an immediate deep house feel. The kick drops, and we have on our hands a wary, cautious note of depth that soon spirals out of control, with a synth that winds itself up higher and higher. However, the whole time, everything firmly grounds itself down on Earth, nothing here is over-the-top or extreme. And that's perhaps to Jones' benefit. At about 2:30, a spacey, warped synth line enters out of the ether, and it's a catchy little number. This deep house number just got launched into the stratosphere, as deep as it paper-thin, this line fits quite well on the whole package, and gives the track some cosmic spice and depth it wasn't necessarily missing, but will be better for having. A great track, a highlight, even, and a nice change of pace from the previous cuts of microhouse and fiercely minimal tech house. Hats off to Jamie Jones.
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Onur Özer - Halikarnas = Vakant man Onur Özer spices up his number with a Middle-Eastern melody (he is from Turkey, after all) and lots of echo and reverb, giving his cut an unheard-of depth. The tribal feel here is thick, layered, and majestic in its mystery and intrigue. A vocal line is even brought in; the Middle-Eastern flavor hangs like a thick fog over this track, but it's a great builder and a solid dance number. Less atmosphere for more flavor is never a bad sacrifice, and in this case, its done perfectly. Rhythm feels solid, and the instruments used are out of the ordinary. Unique and flavorful, this track is a solid cut in any manner and deserves a spot on your decks.
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Deetron - Maguma = Rekids man and resident Swiss producer Deetron lays on his flavor of Detroit techno all over the last track, 'Maguma'. Brushed-out hi-hats and a solid kick layer the 8-bit-esque melody and the humming, pulsing pads that run side-by-side it. The common two-note synth riff of so many techno and tech house cuts follows, and the track builds from there, a robotic beast with a soft side that comes from the pizzicato string section underneath it all. An acidic synth line follows the break, and the momentum sort of stagnant. The string section jumps all over the place, and the track, before one final rattling build, finishes off. Not exactly a disappointment, but not the best track on here by any stretch. Still pretty good though, with an ending build that makes up for the lousy break.
Deetron - Maguma
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Is Cocoon Compilation G better than Cocoon Compilation F? Depends on your perspective. I would say yes. There are less spectacular tracks here, but the overall package is better than F as a whole. But who am I to say? Make your own judgments! That is all. H coming up soon.
-NL
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