August can't come soon enough...
Amazing to me that another year has rolled by, and we're presented with another volume of the Kompakt Total compilation series, now up to number seven. One of the standout tracks is this "Arquipelago" song (which is so good in fact, that it has appeared on a number of high-profile DJ mix CDs this year) by the Brazilian mastermind, Gui Boratto.
The song was originally released as the A-side of a single on Kompakt's most recent sub-label, K2, an imprint started last summer that they've been using to fill in the cracks between the Kompakt main-label schedule, but that is dedicated to classic, boundary-pushing minimal techno EPs. Anyway, I think mister Boratto's work is among the most interesting of the K2 material, as this song is so full of subtlety, and simply massive, roaring bass! Really, this has to be heard on a big system to get the full impact of the track - put it on and turn it way up! Do it!
So, back to Total 7 - two discs with a dozen tracks each, covering the wide swath of the Kompakt stable, from straight Kompakt releases, Kompakt Extra (aka the Speicher EPs), K2, and Kompakt-Pop - they're all represented wonderfully by label mainstays Justus Köhncke, Reinhard Voigt, SCSI 9, Superpitcher, and Michael Mayer (with Tobias Thomas), as well as Kontrast, Wighnomy Bros, who also lend their hand to remixing Triola, DJ Koze, the Modernist, Mikkel Metal, the Rice Twins (whose gorgeous track "For Penny and Alexis" comes from the B-side of a Speicher release they shared with the Orb), Wassermann, Robert Babicz, Steadycam, Hug, Axel Bartsch, the Field, Oxia (huge song!), and Jonas Bering. Mister Boratto actually appears twice, with his Kompakt-Pop released "Like You" song, as remixed by Superpitcher and Michael Mayer (as Supermayer), opening disc 2. Equally amazing.
If you follow techno music, this compilation is nothing short of essential. Seriously. For a minute last year, I thought Kompakt might have been in a bit of a slump, but this set would seem to say otherwise. There is also a triple-vinyl version that includes a dozen of the tracks together. Unfortunately, Total 7 doesn't come out for another month, but I've been sitting on this for at least that long and have had a hard time not posting this right away. It will be available to buy at all finer record shops, including our friends at Forced Exposure, and online via the high-bitrate, DRM-free Kompakt-MP3.net store, as of mid-August. Ridiculously recommended. For real.
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Also, if you're lucky enough to be in Kompakt's home-town of Köln on Friday, August 25th, they're having a massive party to celebrate the release - loads of people are doing DJ sets, and mister Boratto is one of the few doing a live PA, so check that out. If only I could be there!