Although for many dance music aficionados, Hamburg may conjure up the dusty deep house revival of the 2010s associated with labels like Smallville Records, the German city also has a fiercer side. It is, after all, the home of Helena Hauff and famed punk-club turned weirdo mecca, The Golden Pudel.
It’s also the home of the club PAL, a mecca for the darker shades of nightlife. The full spectrum of that darkness is on display for the inaugural release of in-house label, LAP Records. Even if the label names lacks some creative oomph, don’t let that turn you off this release. Focused on club residents and regulars, the release moves expertly from cinematic trance-driven techno (Peachlyfe) to gravity-bending breakbeats (90005).
Our premiere arrives courtesy from PAL resident DJ, Leopold Faerber aka Faerber. “Invox” hits the sweet-spot between driving, industrial pressure and pure dance floor funk. It can be hard to make techno this tough sound fun, but Faerber’s squiggled synth line and reverb-soaked vocal samples give this one a distinct wiggle. It’s a track that, even in crackly AirPods, can transport you back to peak-time.
‘LAP Issue I’ is scheduled for release 16 December via LAP Records. Order a copy from Bandcamp.
TRACKLIST
1. Umwelt – Beyond Celestial Limits
2. Lifka – Phase Alternating Line
3. VUUDUU – Don’t Be Scared
4. ATAVEM – SIGNAL 1
5. RO/AD – Axis
6. FJAAK – PAL
7. Faerber – Invox
8. Peachlyfe – Big Slice
9. Levente – SCAT
10. Varum – Cosmos II
11. DJ SIMLOCKED – Alone (always.never)
12. DJ MELL G & aitch – Keine Hard Feels feat. Odd John & Yung FSK18
13. Christopher Lawrenz & Ma.sa – Ten Lines
14. Clark Davis – SmokedT
15. 9005 – Approaching Phase (2020 Club Mix)
16. L&S – Open End