thunder picks #036

Phew! After an unbelievable night that saw us welcome Chez Damier to Thunder , we thought it was about time we gave Miles a well-earned break from his Thunder picks duties, and gave you all a break from Miles banging on about records. Instead you'll have the pleasure of, erm Joe and Rick banging on about records instead! This weeks Thunder Picks features Matt O'brien, Anthony Shakir, Dan Shake, Christopher Rau and much, much more.

?

Matt O' Brien – Patience E (Off Key Industries)

My first 'Thunder Pick' for this week is the forthcoming release from Mr Matt O' Brien. Matt has been slowly pushing his own productions since 2005 when he began his own label with his first release The Portimao EP which was a jack track that wouldn' t have been out of place on Dance Mania. After seven releases on his own label Matt began producing for the very fine Curle Recordings from Belgium who like to release wonderfully emotive house/techno and some fine bottom swinging techno tracks too. Matt O' Brien goes down the deep & emotive route with this new release entitled The Patience EP that features three sumptuously deep cuts that will still have the dancers erm dancing. Florish will be big with the likes of Dixon & Ame, a big cut for those Panorama Bar & Berghain type venues whilst Resolve and especially Balance with its subtle sounds that hark back to the time of Evolution/Universal Language Records will work wonders and sit in the more discerning record collections for a very long time. A welcome return from Matt. (Rick)

2 Bit Crew Close (Luvdancin)

Second pick this week is from the unknown but still great none the less 2 Bit Crew with a four tracker entitled Project 8000 on the Luvdancin label. 4 cuts bathed in that Kerri Chandler good times sound of house with my personal favourite from the EP being a cut called Close which was tried, tested and verified D O P E at our most recent Thunder alongside Mr Chez Damier. The subtle swing of the stabs and those nice rhodes like keys just take away from all your troubles into another world whilst out on the dancefloor. Not forgetting there are 3 other fantastic and definitely workable tracks from this EP, its a no brainer but don' t hang about as they've only pressed 300. (Rick)

Christopher Rau – Mehris Mood EP – Smallville

I like Christopher Rau. As far as modern European house music goes, he's putting out some solid stuff. He started the year in fine style with the Broke EP on Office Recordings which was great, and has now popped up again with this EP on Smallville which is even better. Christopher has appeared on Smallville before, alongside Smallpeople and others, but this is the first time he's had a whole EP to really express himself. All 3 tracks are good, but it's the title track Mehris Mood that will get the most attention, a deep throbber of a track, that sounds a bit like a cross between STL Silent State and Mach One – On and On. Cherry Jams is also worth checking on the flip, for some funkier, slower warm-up tackle. (Joe)

Dan Shake – 3am Jazz club – Mahogani

So the story goes that this 21yr old British producer was at Dimensions in Croatia last year, and managed to give a CD of his productions to Moodymann…..fast forward 6 months and it's the first release on Kenny's Mahogani label to ever feature someone outside of the Detroit scene, not bad for your debut production! The cynics will moan that it's not wildly original , and that he's just made a couple of Moodymannesque tracks, rather than create his 'own' individual sound, and yes he does seem to have followed the how-to-make-a-moodymann-record blueprint pretty closely, but they're very well produced tracks and worthy of a listen if your into that KDJ sound. Whatever your opinion it's surely a good thing to see a 21 year old british producer make an impact in the cliquey detroit scene, and it'll be interesting to hear how he develops his own sound. (Joe)

Repress of the week: Theo Parrish – 71st & Exchange Used to be (Trilogy Tapes)

Feels a bit weird calling this a repress, as it only came out in January, but those copies flew out and now it's back. For me this is the most solid EP Theo has had out for a while, all 3 tracks are great, but for me it's Petey Wheetfeet that really stands out. A fantastically off-kilter, beast of a tune that squelches along with all sorts of jazzy acidic funk and distorted sounds, without disappearing up its own arse. As well as the brilliance of the title track there's also the uplifting delight that is Blueskies Surprise, a laid-back, soulful cut that's perfect for a summers day. With 3 strong tracks, you're getting some bang for your buck with this one. (Joe)

From The Vaults: Anthony Shakir Spectre (Seventh City) 

This is a cut from one of Detroit's most unique beat makers Mr Anthony Shakir. Taken from his What, Me Worry ? EP on Dan Bell's old Seventh City Records. Four tracks all with that undeniable and as mentioned earlier unique production sound that only Anthony can do I've pumped for the cut entitled Spectre. A stuttering snare and bass kick soaked in atmospherics with a lovely phasing pad which combine to make this wonderful track that isn't house or techno or broken beat or deep house its just great. (Rick)

Party of the Week (South London) Shakedown w/ Deisel & Nick Williams (Canavans in Peckham, Saturday)

There have been some great guests down at Peckhams most famous pool hall recently, but this Friday looks particularly appealing. The party will feature Phonica's Nick Williams, a great DJ, who also recently started the hugely promising Meda Fury label (well worth checking out their recent Ram EP release by Takuya Matumoto), he will be joined by the mighty Diesel who needs no introduction. Miles reliably tells me Diesel has one of the best record collections in London, so between the 2 of them should be a cracking party. 

Party of the Week (East London) Dream States w/ Simoncino (DanceTunnel in Dalston, Saturday)

This Saturday see's our friends at Kristina return to some venue called Dance Tunnel for the next instalment of their Dream States night, following in the footsteps of some inspired bookings like Iron Curtis and Big Strick, they have again kept the quality levels high by booking Italian DJ and Producer Simoncino, Simoncino has put out some great records recently for Thug, Creme and L.I.E.S, and is also a superb DJ. Simoncino will be supported by the always excellent Jason Spinks. 

Dapper Short Sleeved Apparel of the Year Thunder Gherkin T-Shirts

If you' re wanting some of the freshest garments known to man or woman for this coming festival season in Croatia or anyone else where you can get away with wearing a tee shirt under some glorious sunshine, then we at Thunder have just the very thing to make you stand out from the crowd in one of our own unique and limited run Thunder Gherkin Records Tribute tee shirts (Home Shopping Ed: Jesus Christ, this is worse than QVC). Full details sizings and of how to get your hands on one can be found on the Thunder Facebook page here. (Rick)