Over the last couple of years Manuel Tur has become one of my favourite producers, his remixes and original productions always find a home in my DJ box. So, when I found out an album was in the works - I was very excited indeed.
Now, I must admit - I didn’t actually get around to buying the album until a month or so after it’s release. I know - I should probably be locked up, as this really is something very special.
Unlike many albums, this is not a collection of previous productions grouped together and forced into an album, this is 13 tracks original productions put together for release. The result is one of the best albums I’ve heard in quite some time.
The album starts off slowly, the quiet, low end strings, piano and splashes of “Patchworks” which then builds into the beats of ‘Stay’ - the album’s first of 3 vocal tracks, the vocal performed by Larissa Kapp who’s voice is very similar to Lisa Stansfield. Next up is the dubby, string laden and rather leftfield “Rubicond”, it provides the set up for one of my favourite tracks on the album “Golden Complexion” - another vocal track and with no beats it completely holds your complete attention. The middle section of the album is like a deep house set, building from dub and leftfield to more progressive cuts taking you towards the final vocal track of the album and the lead single “Will Be Mine”. This signals the end of the middle chapter, the start of the end of the album is two very downtempo tracks “A40″ and “On The Road”. They are the calm before the storm - although the storm is the uplifting and almost acid house vibe of ‘Radial’ a gorgeous summer of love record perfect for day time festivals, it’s sunshine captured in 6 minutes of blissful house music. The album ends with another beatless production “Final Later”, and a reminder of Manuel Tur’s German upbringing - sounding like kraftwork, electronic strings build and collapse, weaving themselves amongst faint noises and samples. It rounds the album off brilliantly, the whole collection made me want to press repeat and start the whole journey again.
This is a very mature debut from a producer who could still be considered to be learning his trade - at only 22, he’s managed to produce a near perfect collection of tracks that many of considerable more experience would struggle to create. It’s an album that has it’s dancefloor moments, but similar to Sasha’s “Airdrawndagger” it has been built for the home - it knows it’s place.
A deep house mix from the mind of DJ afraid of cheese. 11 tracks blend together in a melting pot of 65 minutes worth of ingredients by Solomun & Stimming, Kruse & Nurnberg, Jay Shepheard, Sebastian Davidson, and of course - Manuel Tur and Pezzner, the perennial mainstay ingredients.