Celebrating a determined and ambitious 15 year tenure as Yorkshire’s chief bastion of deep house music, Hudd Traxx enlist a who’s who from their gilded halls to contribute tunes for a special anniversary release. Split across two vinyl parts and an expansive digital release, it’s a pretty prestigious occasion featuring dance music legends Nightmares On Wax & Jovonn, long term label stalwarts Iron Curtis & JT Donaldson, a guest appearance from Mark Hawkins (FKA Marquis Hawkes) and a track from label head Eddie Leader. Adding to the already weighty credentials are Agnès (releasing his first material since 2013), Berlin-via-Italy producer Black Loops and, representing a new generation of signings for the label, Columbian producers DFRA and No Different.
Black Loops get things underway for Part 1, “Forster Funk” gleefully charging through the terrace with an expansive, arms-aloft, mid-session burner. Simmering on a bed of pumping organs and resplendent with a whole manner of synth niggles and echo-laded vox, it’s both direct and funky, curvy in all the right places and destined to inject your Saturday night with some hefty acceleration and audio glamour.
Leeds dance & downbeat figurehead, Nightmares On Wax, now based in Ibiza, bridges those unlikely pools of hedonism between north England and the Balearic pleasure island for a rave-indebted, sub-tickling monster set to smack you clean in the chops with a veritable array of rock-solid breaks and foundation-shaking bass. A rare coup for Hudd, snatching some exclusive material outside of his usually tight nit Warp Records circle, the track’s an acid test track for any soundsystem claiming to be bullet proof; destined to cause a scene and a mad racket on every rotation. Grab the wax for this one as it’s vinyl only.
No chance for the desk to cool down yet as Jovonn’s “The Avenue Brooklyn Bounce” powers on, tuff n chunky as the New York icon treats us to a sublime exercise swing, shuffle, melody and rhythm. Gracing the track with his own indelible vox; deploying classic M1 licks and decorating the track with a plethora of beautifully synchronized hats, shakers and cymbals; smatterings of the producer’s incredible arsenal of studio tricks and flurries keeping us absolutely locked till the very last kick.
Eddie Leader closes off Part 1 with an urgent and white-hot jutterer, “Fade Away’. It’s octave-shifted, square-wave wobble fizzing like wet phosphorous on the wax while string sections gradually increase the drama as they slowly encroach on the track.
Onto Part Two and longstanding Hudd Traxx veteran JT Donaldson drops “What I Got” - twisting and contorting throughout its duration, a serpentine roller rich with block party flavour and the very essence of deep house coursing through its veins.
Dixon Avenue Basement Jams’ Mark Hawkins does some moonlighting under his newly deed-polled alias with the epically beautifully “Chasing Paper”. No royalty credits heading north of the border here, just swathes of satisfied revellers and euphoric dancefloors guaranteed upon delivery.
Meanwhile, another Hudd Traxx regular, Iron Curtis, pays tribute to one of the scene’s greatest on “Kerri On (Chandelier Dub)”. A red-lit nocturnal jam that Mr. Chandler himself has rubber stamped, its ever-growing bassline, soaring strings and delicately placed keys taking us towards a seriously blissful conclusion.
Concluding the vinyl release is a track by Agnès - founder of Sthlmaudio Recordings. The stylish Swiss keeps true to his remit – deep, dubby, transcendent grooves that sway lushly with the midnight air. “Embryonic Connections” taking us right back to the roots of that tribal beat and a fitting end to this mammoth release.
Two new additions to the HT roster pack out the digital release. DFRA unloads some catchy sample usage, concentric bass and bubbly dynamics on his funky house number - “Candelaria”; while No Different opens up his account with a taut, rattly and acidic number, pairing up discordant synth squiggles with a riotous vox and hefty kick.
10 tracks which perfectly instil why Hudd started this label of love 15 years ago; to showcase fierce, uncompromising dancefloor workouts in as sincere and stylish manner as possible. The artists and tracks chosen show the adventurous routes and development the label keep as their main point of focus – to unearth the tantalizing new and exciting sounds of house music’s continuous evolution.
This release is dedicated to Richi Larkin & Yuriano x
