Posted by: Derek

When I first started playing tracks from Jerome Isma-Ae, I thought for some reason he was from Israel. Not at all - he’s a native of Munich, Germany, just with a crazy sounding name. Either way, that guy has production down.

While you wouldn’t call him the most versatile of producers in terms of the range of sounds or techniques he uses (he definitely has a recognizable style), his tracks end up showing a crazy versatility in that they’re playable in all sorts of contexts — big room, small room, along with house, progressive, trance, techno, even that slow progressive psytrance that Iboga Records is famous for (and Iboga has to be a future topic! wow).

To span all these possibilities, a production has to be bang-on-the-money, and Jerome delivers some fracken killer grooves somewhere between progressive house and tribal…

Here’s some choice tunes from the man. Not necessarily the most famous, but some of my faves…

Smile When You Kill Me

Stars In Your Head

Trouble In The Redlight District (with Tomcraft)

Love In Stereo (Remix)

PLAY ALL

If you dig what you’re hearing, check out his full library at beatport

He’s got his own label, JEE productions, as well, so check them out too…

Posted by: Cor

Below is a live DJ set from Beatery favorite Zodiac Cartel, shamelessly reposted from his Soundcloud page. It’s full of the techy, funky, sloppy-clap goodness we’ve all come to expect from the man. If you’re a regular Beatery listener, you’ll surly recognize more than a few of the jams in this epic two-hour tech-funk throwdown. Enjoy.

Zodiac Cartel - Live & Uncut - Budapest March 2010

For more information on the man behind the decks…
Zodiac Cartel’s website
Zodiac Cartel on Facebook

Posted by: Cor

It seems like it’s been a long while since I’ve posted any proper electronic dance music, so today I’d like remedy that by to introducing you an unsung favorite. Meet Sam Hell. He’s quickly becoming my go-to producer for ass-shaking funky electro, now that the Plump DJs have gone all rave-wobble on me. And while he doesn’t seem to have as many different tricks up his sleeve as the aforementioned duo, he consistently delivers bouncy beats that get a reluctant dance floor moving. Let me give you a taste of Hell…

Cosimo
An older breaks number, this is the song that made me sit up and take notice of Mr. Hell. It reminds me of the Plumps of yore… especially when it gets around to that funky melodic hook near the end of the track.

Algebra
This is his latest single. Not much more than a syncopated bassline and some techy stuff on top, but sometimes that’s all you need in a club track.

Mothership
And rounding out the sampler we have this rolling progressive house cut. I love the breakdown in this one. That dramatic piano and synth combination almost has a Muse vibe to it.

PLAY ALL
For those of us with shit to do.

If you like what Sam Hell’s got going in these tracks, you can pursue more of his work on Beatport and even Amazon.

Posted by: Matt

First, Adam Freeland was after your soul. Then Benny Benassi needed satisfaction. In 2010, England’s Cakeboy steps up to fill the chantable, disaffected robot vocal gap with Swamp Thing.

Surprisingly often the A-side of many singles end up in the shadow of any of many remixes that may follow (or were deliberately solicited to maximize commercial viability). In this case though I think the original version holds ground quite firmly as a sunny electro-breaks jam that doesn’t break any new ground but hits all the right notes and sweet spots you would want/expect from this well-flogged territory. The JFB remix turns the lights down a bit and staggers into Dubstep territory, but don’t let that scare you away. The crunch is all still there along with a few new melodic phrases that add a nice darkness to the track that is missing in the original (hey, it’s about a monster after all!).

Cakeboy - Swamp Thing (Original Mix)

Cakeboy -Swamp Thing (JFB remix)

Buy the full release and more remixes on Beatport

Posted by: Derek

I had the pleasure of meeting LA-based producer Nicholas Bennison when I worked for Looq records back in the day.

Originally from the UK, Nicholas is a killer producer and DJ. He’s a genre chameleon, switching from melodic progressive to trance, tech-trance, and full-on psy, and his sound has gotten the attention of some of the biggest names in the biz, and he’s done original work and remixes for a crap-ton of labels, including legendary Hook Recordings.

He tends to keep it pretty tough and rolling - as reflected in his own sound and also that of his label Propulsion Records.

This set from him from 2004 runs the gamut of sounds, and is chock full of solid tunes. I grabbed it from his website at the time of release back when and it’s been with me ever since! Actually, I remember it from a particular night of it playing in my car while I ferried Jondi and Spesh between gigs on NYE…

It makes killer road music - so burn yourself a copy for the road to Black Rock if you’re going to BM this year — it will definitely keep the journey interesting.

Listen here:

Nicholas Bennison - Energy FM 2004 Mix (right-click to download)