- Intimate house music with nods to Chicago, New York and Detroit.
- musclecars are devoted students of house music. The New York-based duo of Brandon Weems and Craig Handfield work across styles with a specialty in the deep, velvety grooves of the American Midwest and Eastern Seaboard. During their often all-vinyl DJ sets, they opt for slow but thrilling selections where melodies take their time to build, crescendoing and cruising rather than jumping to a peak-time climax. On Shelter (Building It, Still), their second 12-inch on their own Coloring Lessons, the duo switch up their usual repertoire of disco and funk to go even slower.
Incorporating spiritual jazz and R&B into house music, the four-track EP combines Kerri Chandler's emotive style with the rawness of Joe Claussell's productions. Moments of euphoria, desire and zen manifest across the duo's minimal arrangements, releasing endorphins into the body at just the right moments. Like Jenifa Mayanja—one of the best in the game and a contributor to Coloring Records' first compilation last year—musclecars take both a classic and futuristic approach to house music.
On the one hand, Shelter (Building It, Still) embodies the genre's soul and elevating rhythms; on the other, it possesses an otherworldly quality. Sci-fi synthlines glisten and gleam, adding melodrama and a touch of Detroit. As a result, the EP seems to live across time zones and styles, referencing the close ties between Chicago, New York and Motor City house.
This time-travelling quality is best embodied on the title track, which pairs Brandon Markell Holmes' silky vocals with charged synths and staggered drums. Holmes' warmth is a surprising compliment to the space-age electronics, highlighting a wonderful contrast that defines the record. On his remix, Chicago legend Ron Trent picks up the pace by adding a jazzy house bassline without losing the original's potency.
"We Go Home Together" is equally evocative. During the first two minutes, expansive pads and hushed percussion (think Larry Heard) build the atmosphere until a luscious saxophone arrives. Moments like these show the duo's expertise with melody—as they leisurely explore each groove, they interact intimately with each chord progression, knowing exactly when to tamp down or prolong.
Shelter (Building It, Still) feels like a magnetic field, pushing and pulling samples, notes and loops to create subtly energizing electric currents. Nodding to great deep house producers with the added twists of transcendental jazz and a cinematic mood, this 12-inch marks a refinement for Weems and Handfield, who are committed to—and succeeding in—keeping New York's vibrant house music tradition alive.
Tracklist01. Prelude (Building It, Still)
02. Shelter feat. Brandon Markell Holmes
03. We Go Home Together
04. Shelter (Ron Trent Remix)