House and techno releases from artists like Bushwacka, John Summit, and Spencer Brown came out the week of September 25.
As September came and went, so too did the summer. With it, the most lively part of the festival season drew to a close. House and techno’s heaviest hitters never stop bringing the heat, however.
Lineup drops from the likes of BPM Festival, Amnesia Ibiza, and Djakarta Warehouse Project weren’t all that caught the attention of fixed beat enthusiasts this past week. The music itself also called for celebration, from longtime dance music veterans like Bushwacka to new school artists like Spencer Brown and John Summit, a who’s who of the house and techno milieu offered up compelling cuts as the month drew to a close.
Trust us, if we had all the time in the world, we would listen to the thousands of dance tracks that came out on Friday and compile an exhaustive list of all the ones worth hearing. For now, this quick snapshot of major house and techno tracks released on the week of September 25 will have to do.
Read along for more information on the five tracks that dropped this week, and listen to more house and techno curations on EDM Identity’s Subterranean Sounds, Melodic Marvels, and Dancefloor Decadence Spotify playlists!
John Summit and VLTRA – “Legacy”
Summit stans, rejoice! After a highly on-brand social media debacle, John has finally gone through the painstaking process of rebranding his Off The Grid label to Experts Only. To celebrate, he’s re-christened the imprint with a VLTRA collaboration titled “Legacy.”
The track sees John Summit and VLTRA do what they do best. Sterile sonics frame an earworm spoken-word sample in the first portion of the track. They build tension to a fever pitch before a dancefloor-ready tech house drop signals a shift in energy. It’s safe to say Experts Only is off to a running start.
Elif – “Medusa”
Elif recently launched a record label of her own. Following releases on imprints such as Stil Vor Talent and Anjunadeep, she has inaugurated her own, Marginalia, with a three-track EP titled Medusa.
The effort’s title track is a progressive house slow burner that flexes Elif’s crisp sound design and expert ear for arrangement. The Istanbul talent slowly layers on element after element, only building on the chord progression around the 1/2 mark. The crescendo that follows offers a needed release, making “Medusa” an especially dynamic cut.
Bushwacka – “Lectrobee”
35 years in dance music isn’t all that Bushwacka brings to the table. As evidenced by last week’s “Lectrobee,” his studio prowess has stood the test of time, adapting to the turning tides of the scene. Synth melodies shapeshift across the track’s stereo image, anchored to a metronome of soft plucks for most of its runtime.
“Lectrobee” will appear on Futuro, a compilation on John Digweed‘s celebrated Bedrock Records imprint. Tracks by the likes of Nick Muir, David Morales, and Marco Bailey will accompany it.
Spencer Brown and Luttrell – “Masonic & Webster”
It’s hard to go wrong with Spencer Brown. Last week, the Bay Area native delivered an 11-song album titled Equanimity via his own diivine record label. The entire effort is worth a listen, but his Luttrell collab “Masonic & Webster” is a clear standout.
Artful noise abounds throughout the over-seven-minute runtime of “Masonic & Webster.” Offsetting these experimental elements are more classic dance music elements, making the track accessible yet refined and tasteful. Needless to say, this isn’t Spencer’s first rodeo.
Lorenzo De Blanck – My Beat
Some superstars certainly stepped up to the plate this past week. For our money, though, the arguable standout of the bunch was “My Beat” by rising Italian artist Lorenzo De Blanck.
The track arrived by way of wAFF‘s NATURE imprint on a four-track EP of its namesake. With crisp sound design and clear comprehension of what goes over well on the dancefloor, “My Beat” demonstrates that there is still ground left to cover in tech house. Count Lorenzo De Blanck among your artists to watch.
