- Gemini―one of Chicago's most beloved house producers―mysteriously vanished around 2002. "He made a well-publicized move to the Bay Area prior to 2000," reports local house magazine 5. They go on to explain that when he returned soon after, he was a different man. All his studio gear was missing, he shunned long-time friends and vowed revenge on some local producers who he believed to have stolen music from his laptop. Someone even claimed to have seen Gemini (real name Spencer Kincy) begging on the streets, completely destitute. Later, he disappeared altogether.
But here's where the story gets really weird. In February 2010, the same journalist―Terry Matthews―uncovered more of the trail. He speculated that in a single day the previous year, Kincy had filed three lawsuits against arms of the US government, including the FBI, to the tune of almost $30 million. Who can say what happened to Kinsey? Mental illness? A genuine grievance with the law? Whatever the case, his music continues to be remembered.
Tribute Volume 2 is Robsoul's second memorial to the missing producer, collecting four tracks from 1998-2000. (Robsoul haven't heard from him either; these cuts were licensed from another label.) The jaunty "Spirals" is up first, distinguished by the constant patter of snares and a Rhodes piano (or something like it) that bobs and weaves like a boxer. Nine minute cut "Return of the Jack" is similarly drum-heavy, but recruits more bits of clanging percussion to its cause. With the addition of a jumbled, mid-range bass sequence and wispy chords, it's pure dance floor material.
"Take Your Time" and "Wanna Push You" are less about jack and more about funk. The former is built on a rather polite low-end, with Green Velvet-like vocals (or maybe actual Green Velvet vocals) reciting the song's title in a business-like fashion. The latter is more like filter house, with a tidy little guitar loop repeating ad infinitum and adding a nice sense of swing. The low-end follows a similar pattern, but bubbles over every few bars to add a short flourish. As the bare-boned descriptions imply, there's not much going on in either of these two tracks. Or, for that matter, the whole release. It's kind of tracky. In that context, however, it's as good as anything from its own―or this―era.
Tracklist A1 Spirals
A2 Return of the Jack
B1 Take Your Time
B2 Wanna Push You