- Los Angeles DJ Thee-O (Jacob Ofilas) has been a part of the city’s club and rave scene for over a decade. After his initial rave experiences throughout the early 90’s, Thee-O became enchanted with the ever present chill out room. He then began producing under the studio name Reef Project (after his love of aquariums), and has since gone on to release two albums worth of original material.
“Deep End”, Reef Project’s latest release, features a mix of lush sounds, ambient soundscapes, and atmospheric melodies. It combines trippy electronica, danceable minimalistic stylings, as well as bits of drum ‘n bass and dubby house - a true mesh of sounds for the wee hours of the morning as the party begins to wind down.
The disc begins with “Angel (Bitwise Edit)”, which feels like a journey into the future as it would have been perceived in the 1950’s. It is like a trip to Disney Land, featuring samples layered of vibrant synth-notes. That leads into “Crazy Sword”, a minimal dance track that could work in either the chill room or the early periods of a house set.
Other highlights of “Deep End” include the jungle-tinged “Dwarf Lion” – a track that is reminiscent of early Aphex Twin and Squarepusher works. “Sponge” is beautiful in its simplicity, as is the downtempo “Cuttle”. All in all, there isn’t really a production on the release that isn’t among the finest experimental material released so far in 2003.
The 12+ minute opus “Dying Star” rounds out “Deep End”, and ends what is a truly satisfying experience.
While those living in Los Angeles and around the West Coast region may be quite familiar with the name Thee-O (and/or Reef Project), it is time for the rest of the world to get educated of this truly innovative and exciting producer. To learn more about Thee-O, visit www.thee-o.com or e-mail him at [email protected].