- Two deep house heroes join forces.
- Saboten came together three years ago in two of Detroit's busiest studios: FXHE and Submerge. Back then, FIT Siegel was a long way from being as prolific as his production partner, Kassem Mosse. But he'd made a handful of fantastic records, including Carmine, in 2015, and Enter The Fog, a debut EP that featured drum programming from Mosse. We may soon get more FIT Siegel EPs. FIT Distribution wound down last month, which frees up Siegel, as he told Resident Advisor recently, "to give more time and attention to the label and [for me] to make music." Saboten, Siegel's first release for three years, underlines his and Mosse's studio chemistry.
On the EP's standout track, "West World," a cosmic melodica wanders across snappy, talcum-powdered drums and billowy synth veils. (I'd file it alongside tracks like Sabres Of Paradise's "Lick Wid Nit Wit" and Buttechno's "Dubber Funk" for its folksy round-the-campfire lead.) The melodica aside, "West World" is typical of the gritty leftfield house that Mosse has cultivated, but with the delicately musical feel common in Siegel's work. There are loose gestures to desert plains elsewhere—"Saboten," a chuggy acid cut, is Japanese for cactus—but what comes through strongest is the music's sunny outlook, which remains true even once you hear the raindrop piano keys that fall on "Cycle Blue."
TracklistA1 Saboten
A2 West World
B1 Cycle Blue