- Madrid's new imprint, Troubled Kids, has stepped up where a lot of "deep" labels have slipped into almost nonchalance. The Kids ethos is simple: Release solid, subliminal grooves that delve deeper and darker into the techno-house relations using slick and emotive production that jacks dance floors, while keeping strong melodic values. The results have attracted remixes from players like Motorcitysoul and Pawas, but this latest release, Changes, comes from a man that sits at the centre, Jesus Gonsev.
Gonsev's Changes EP, like his previous Trouble Kids release, sees him probing his darker side. The smooth and elegant digital production takes centre stage here, with three tracks of dubby deepness that will not grab you by the balls, but instead ease your mind down the discothèque. The title track slips along with a silky bass and an off-beat bleep. A delicate synth leads you into some Obama "yes we can" propaganda, which for many will dominate the track. The tones in "Changes" are deep and pensive and the clean, tight nature of this production allows every layer to play a part over the nine minutes. A solid head-nodder, I just wish that the bleep had been replaced with something more…fitting.
"Superclass" follows a similar route to "Changes." The ambience is the same and the production is tight. It's deep, flowing and a perfect mood builder, but the intensity doesn't quite amount to all it should as it seeks refuge in the smoothed-out open hats. "3 Billion" is perhaps another Obama reference, i.e. the move to cut the US AIDS relief budget, and the vibe confirms it; dubby, pensive atmospherics build a sadness to the track, culminating in a breakdown that the prog house heads would dig at a 4 AM Renaissance gig, but you may have already heard it in sets from Jimpster, Manuel Tur, Nick Holder, et al.
Tracklist A1 Changes
AA1 Superclass
AA2 3 Billion