Artist: Martinez
Title: The Paradigm Shift
Label: Moon Harbour Recordings
Catalog #: MHR0122
Genre: Tech-house
Release Date: May 26, 2010
Rating: 8
We all remember the days when the intense feeling of excitement upon discovering dance music hit us like an ill-fated addiction. I’m sure we all scoured the interweb for anything that would make a sound. I would blindly download EP after EP until my wireless just could not take it anymore. I remember first hearing Martinez’s Laidback Grooves EP and thinking, wow, this is comically House-y. I had really pictured some old Latin guy from Chicago making all of these hot, sweaty tracks for all the die-hards out there. Learning that Martinez was in fact, Martin Swanstein of Denmark, well, predictably my paradigm had shifted.
Martinez functions as a venerable chameleon of deep house, not because his point of view drastically shifts from tune to tune, but because his productions are moments of metamorphosis wrapped in sleek pulses. The Paradigm Shift is filled with colors that change before your ears only to settle within a steady thump.
The roughly first half of the album is a focused schema that ties it all back to straightforward house. Yet, there is a variety in the voices that Martinez chooses in his rhythms that makes for an intricately pleasant wobble. There is an underlying love for some hard funk, as heard on “Paradigm Shift” and “Kamino.” The bass, of course, is a primary reason for this, but Martinez just knows precisely when to bring in certain elements to maximize his valleys and peaks.
Highlight, “Mr. Decocco,” is a warm blanket of jazz-inflected guitar accents that wrap tightly around the replicated vocal sample, yet what sounds so simple actually becomes quite complex when a wash of tension striking chords change the mood. It is the perfect blend of light and dark. Martinez knows how to construct a firm groove, but he isn’t afraid to experiment with the ambiance that can trigger an emotional response. It’s almost regrettable in a way; I was dancing to it one way when I should have been dancing to it this way. Martinez, quite the shape-shifter indeed.
“Damaged Color” employs a squelching, dark bassline to evoke a devilish mood, which creates a sort of disoriented-in-the-fun house feeling. Yet, as soon as the last bass thumps, the lunar sheen of “Gourmet (Edit),” enters the arena and delivers awe-inspiring moments. In the midst of what seems like a never-ending ethereal cruise, “Memorial” draws the curtains with a set of studio strings and a layer cake of other supremely satisfying nuances.
For Martinez, the devil is in the details as he utilizes a cosmic array of subtleties to meld and weave the sounds encompassed in The Paradigm Shift. The production and sound design is superb, yet there is also an inherent cut-and-paste feeling that varies the experience, giving it a little bit of everything. Upon listening, I experienced euphoric highs and cerebral reflections, sometimes within the span of one song and for me that is an ideal. These tracks can be heard throughout the night, blaring from enormous club systems, yet there is enough complexity to this release that warrants plenty of home listening as well, marking The Paradigm Shift as a true success.
-Andrew Reilly
Tracks:
1. Basic Structure
2. Solaris
3. Paradigm Shift
4. Kamino
5. Mr. Decocco
6. Thought Patterns
7. Lavender Mist
8. Williamsburg
9. Maresias
10. Damaged Color
11. Gourmet (Edit)
12. Memorial
Strong album (love the
We need more education out
thanks for the wonderful
Absolutly bangin mix phil
Great Mix... Love hearing
VERY NICE