Vanguard Sounds Vol.1 & Examplars :: Double review (Machining Dreams)

The artists of Machining Dreams are not about creating walloping acid resurgence or beat heavy dancefloor material, there is an endemic respect for the foundations and a desire to build on the pioneering experiments of house and techno.

It is difficult to overcome the musical history of an electronic city, to break free from the past glories and forge anew. One artist building on the past and creating a new future for the Chicago sound is Hakim Murphy. Murphy, who started as a dancer, began DJ’ing and getting involved in music production in the 90’s. He took things slow, with his first release coming out in 2005. Since then Murphy has been turning heads with EP’s on Planet Detroit and Metamorphic. Murphy also curates the house centered Synapasis Recordings with Inbum Cho. With this Murphy is the head of his own label which is making some ripples in the techno and house world; Machining Dreams. The label has been releasing material from artists such as Franco Cangelli, Obsolete Music Technology and Hakim Murphy himself. As a head of steam gathers under the hood of this imprint it seems fitting to have a closer look at how this machine runs.

For their latest the label has spun together a compilation, Vanguard Sounds Vol.1. In many respects the compilation is a manifesto for what the label is about. Hakim Murphy opens the record with the low rumblings of “Pulsate Phosphorous.” The track is subtle, simple and brimming with a 90’s charm. The track toes the lines of techno and house, with its acid lines and machine rendered beats. Chicago resident G Marcell steps up with “Excites Me,” a low key house affair. The track is bare, gently rising in a lounging house manner. The flipside introduces the dark world of DJ Spider, frontman of Plan B Recordings. “Dystopia” is pickled in a sinister undercurrents, with piano stabs meshing into beats and almost gruesome samples. The team of Amir Alexander & Dakini9 come together for the final foray in house. The darkness of “Dystopia” runs into “Black Ops,” with the duo making ready use of unsettling samples to bolster the beats.

On the horizon is a new 12” by the head man himself, Examplars. Murphy offers up four tracks which melt house and techno with a remarkable lightness of touch. “Essential”opens this fondue with subdued and insular sounds, blurring the borders of deep house and minimal techno. The sub-aquatic feel reaches new fathoms with “EMPB.” Introspection is crossed with greasy industrial beats to produce a clever and complex sound. “Melody Banger” follows on the flip. The beats are DJ friendly with plinks of synth wandering across bass. The track has a deep and thoughtful aspect, soulful and smart. The safety and warmth of the predecessors is somewhat broken by the burbling and fractured sounds of “Magda C2.” Yet, this splintered tone is soon balanced by a broody house beat. The four tracks find a wonderful equilibrium, with Murphy knowing just when to push and just when to leave well enough alone.

An ear for house or techno is something you might expect from anyone releasing it, yet not all do have the aural appendage. Hakim Murphy does. The Chicago artist and label owner is slicing through the fat, finding lean, soulful, uncluttered sounds and giving them well deserved vinyl space. The artists of Machining Dreams are not about creating walloping acid resurgence or beat heavy dancefloor material, there is an endemic respect for the foundations and a desire to build on the pioneering experiments of house and techno. If you’ve been getting frustrated with the modern route house and techno have found themselves on, take a moment and drop the needle on a Machining Dreams record. This label is on the right path.

Both releases are out now on Machining Dreams.