Time to welcome back Argentinian producer Manuel Sahagun to Freerange for his follow up to his brilliant 2019 release Awake. Manuel has been putting out quality house music since the early 2000’s and has released tunes on Berlin’s Tooman, UK’s Drop, and Detroit’s Kolour as well as remixing legends such as Warren ‘Hanna’ Harris, Robert Owens and Patrick Chardronnet. He brings a freshness and eclecticism to his productions that fits in perfectly with the Freerange ethos of forward-thinking house music loaded with warmth, bumping grooves and a touch of soul. The three tracks on offer here range from the acid tinged, 707 driven Body through shuffled, Detroit-inspired groove of Move and closing out on the slow-mo blissed-out Balearic mood on Ritmo Pandemico. Some great new music to keep your discerning dance floors bouncing to!

We had a chat with Manuel just before this new EP was about to drop…

Please introduce yourself to our readers..

I’m Manuel Sahagun, Dj, Producer, Audio Engineer. I’ve been in the music business for the past 20 years and I’m very happy to be part of the Freerange family once again with this new release!

Who are the artists that have inspired you ?

I started listening to rock music as a kid, bands like Queen, Aerosmith, Guns N Roses, but at a certain point I got hooked on many different black rooted genres like disco-funk, hip-hop, etc. Every kind of music based on rhythm was calling my attention, no matter if it was the radio, a movie or TV. At that time, I was a kid, and it wasn’t easy to get much information about what that music was. It was the early 90s and I remember bands like C+C Music Factory, Mc Hammer, Beastie Boys, Reel 2 Real, etc. Then all those influences converged when I discovered house music in the mid-90s. At that time, it was mostly the USA sound from Chicago, NY, San Francisco… In the 2000s I started getting more inspired by the sound of the UK and France.

There is clearly a sound that is Manuel Sahagun. How would you define that sound?

There have been many changes through the years but now I could say it’s definitely house-music with a mix of deep and funk. It has to sound timeless but also fresh. Maybe that sound is the mix of use of old records samples and modern synthesisers. Who knows what I’m going to do in the future? It doesn’t matter… I’m very happy with my present sound 🙂

Talk us through your new release..

Freerange has been a big influence in my last 15 years so I kinda know what kind of thing Jimpster would like to listen to. A couple of years after my first release he contacted me to do a new one and it was pretty easy. I sent a demo with 7-8 tracks offering different vibes. I like an EP when you can get different vibes and that’s what Jamie wanted too. So, we finally selected 3 tracks making a very balanced EP, “Body” for those who like it more disco, “Move” with a deeper and raw sound, and “Ritmo Pandémico” (meaning pandemic rhythm in Spanish) with a slower tempo and mellow vibe

This release is for lovers of …. 

You would get into this release if you like the music of Till Von Sein, Ben Gomori, Fred Everything, Soul of Hex, Heist Recordings, Sloth Boogie, Quintessentials, etc.

What was the last piece of kit that you bought?

Last year I bought a Novation Peak and it’s a very inspiring tool, very easy to get cool sounds out of it; it’s very handy with all the knobs and faders in front of you and it is sounding great. I recommend it to all those who are looking for a modern synth to make pads-leads-bass sounds

If someone wanted to get to know your taste, what album should they listen to?

This is a tough question, but I would suggest 3 musts: Daft Punk ‘Homework’, Cassius ‘1999’ and I:Cube ‘Adore’. All of them are from France!

What do you like to do when you are not making music?

I spend a lot of time in the studio as I’m not only making music there, I also do music production, mixing and mastering for other artists. But when I’m free I usually study. Over the years I have become a big audio nerd and I read and watch a lot of tutorials, interviews and documentaries about hardware, software and music professionals. My girlfriend is always asking me why I’m still in the studio even when I’m not even working… Well, I guess I love being there.

What have you got coming up in 2022?

After the lockdown I slowly started moving my music to different labels and I have a many upcoming releases for the rest of the year: Armada Music, Get Physical, Love & Loops, Minor Notes, Pomme Frite, DeepBase, Yung Dumb, U’reguay and more to be confirmed.

Freerange Records present Manuel Sahagun ‘ Move & Body EP’ for release on Friday 4^th March via BANDCAMP here on via player link above.

Timeless, hypnotic chugfest from the Balearic brethren…

In the summer of 2019 Italian producer Luca Averna and British producer Chris Coco came up with an idea while hanging out at Luca’s studio in Ibiza, to make an album inspired by 90s Italo Dream House.

The result is ten tracks that start at that point, then go off in various directions, all made in Ibiza, mostly using vintage keyboards, including the classic Korg M1, a dusty old DX7, and Luca’s trusty Roland 909 drum machine.

The next release from the album is Underwater, a track that came out of a session with Luca, Chris and London based singer Louis Vann Johnson.

This release features the original version and an extended club mix from Chris Coco.

The album, Sueño Mediterráneo, is already out on Vinyl, the full digital version is coming in summer.

Released February 25, 2022 via Bandcamp

Brooklyn-based musician, producer, and DJ Peter Matson returns to Bastard Jazz with a dance-floor ready 12” and digital EP, “The Right Way.” The EP builds on Peter’s 2019 release for the label – “Short Trips” – as well as his work as the bandleader for Underground System, and a slew of other solo and collaborative projects over the last two years.

Working from the ground up to produce a batch of 3 original tracks, Matson takes his sensibility as a DJ and musician and blends them into an unique whole, crafting sprawling arrangements into club-ready productions. With overall recording quality and ear for detail taking centre stage, “The Right Way” boasts an impressive list of musical collaborators including a standout A-side feature from Ibibio Sound Machine’s vocalist Eno Williams on the Afro-Disco workout “Call and Answer.” Two beautifully conceived instrumentals on the flip-side dip into slow burning Italo (“The Right Way”) and Balearic (“PB (Ça Va)”) territories, while the UK duo Faze Action helm remix duty, pushing “Call and Answer” toward their signature Afro-meets-Proto House & Disco vibe.

The EP weaves Matson’s affinity for club music with the African influences for which he is known, culminating in a release that is both genre-bending and timelessly danceable. “The Right Way” is out digitally on Bastard Jazz Recordings February 25th, 2022, with the 12” to follow shortly after.

Released February 25, 2022 – via Bandcamp here or via player link above…

We had a chat with Peter just before this new release was about to drop…

Who is Peter Matson?

I’m a person. I spend a lot of time as a musician, producer, and DJ, also often under the name Peter Matson.

Where is it call home?

Brooklyn, NY

Would you say you a musician or a producer first and foremost?

Musician first, producer/DJ a very close 2nd.

Your new release shows you in solo mode, but you are also part of the live band Underground System. What do you enjoy most being in the band, and how does it compare for you in solo mode..

The feeling of playing on stage with a full live band is pretty irreplaceable. Bringing this collaborative and energetic mindset to a solo realm helps me both in process with creating unique sounding music, and in maintaining a raw performative energy as I approach producing or DJing alone.

‘The Right Way’ is your new EP dropping on Bastard Jazz. Talk us through the selection a little.

‘The Right Way’ is a unique batch of tunes to me, the production of which bridged the gap between the busiest year of my musical career (2019) and the stillest a lot of us have ever felt in our lives (lockdown 2020). A lot of the musical gestures and themes evoke a juxtaposition of high energy and motion with a dash of slow burning introspection that I can trace to exactly this moment in time.

Bits of inspiration and demo beats crafted while on tour around the EU with my band Underground System in 2019 made their way back home with me to Brooklyn, and a few grooves stuck out as complementary to each other; something worth fully fleshing out..

This EP is for lovers of ..

Ibibio Sound Machine and Faze Action since they’re proudly featured on it! After that, Byrne & Eno I bet.

Where is your studio? Paint us a picture of your creative space.

My studio location and process has slowly evolved over time. There are a couple of go to studios I have used for years now to finish music, #1 being Transmitter Park Studio in Greenpoint, Brooklyn.

Where I most enjoy to begin the music making process is on small, makeshift setups of my own, in different environments that inspire me. Somewhere I’m living or staying for at least a few weeks. I’ll bring a handful of my favourite instruments, a couple important pieces of hardware, and some small monitors with a quality interface (UA apollo). I’ve done this successfully on tour in France, in Mexico City, at family places in New York, etc. It’s fun and inspiring to have both the limitations and feeling of possibility with new environments to develop a flow within. Most records you’ll hear of mine came out of some situation like this.

What is your most used piece of kit and why do you like it?

A defining piece of gear of recent years for me has been the Roland SH-101. Even if it is not out front always in my productions, using the onboard sequencer in tandem with a drum machine to help define the tempo and feeling of a tune brings an undeniable swagger and idiosyncratic feel to a performance, both live and studio. Long before the SH-101 or other synthesis, I’m a guitarist so I’ve spent years on it and will continue to always use that instrument.

Where’s the best place to listen to ‘ The Right Way’ and what should we be drinking?

Somewhere that has a bit of a directional feeling to it. A small panorama city or country view you haven’t been seeing all the time. Drink some great mezcal, wine, or a Carajillo if you’re in MX.

If someone wanted to get to know your taste, what album should they listen to?

For Dance Music: Metro Area – Metro Area (the compilation with all the 12”s)

Spectacular sunsets or meditative sunrises?

Tough choice….. Spectacular Sunsets.

Thank you for your time!

BASTARD JAZZ PRESENTS PETER MATSON ‘THE RIGHT WAY EP’ RELEASED FRIDAY 25^TH FEBRUARY

Freerange Records and Delusions of Grandeur boss man, Jamie Odell co-runs these labels alongside his oldest friend Tom Roberts. Freerange started up initially as a platform for his own releases back in 1996. Fast forward 25 and Jimpster is still serving up the goods, this time with this very surprising album, ‘Birdhouse’, that was created during the lockdown of the last two years.

A world away from his normal deep house releases, this album is a collection of 12 tracks that moves through the deeply soulful, to jazzy beats and neo soul. Birdhouse sees the artist digging deep into his past musical loves, collaborated with talents old and new on this incredibly beautiful piece of work. Highlights include the title track Birdhouse, Beautiful Day, Doors to Your Heart, and Ascension which you can check by clicking the link below. Nice one Jimpster.

Jimpster’s lockdown LP was made throughout 2020 and finally sees the light of day at the end of February 2022 having been delayed around 6 months due to the ongoing vinyl pressing hold ups. Birdhouse is the revered producers seventh full length LP and can be considered a full circle as he takes a step away from the dance floor to revisit his early inspirations of jazz, 70’s fusion, library music, ambient and sample-based downtempo electronica. With its soulful touches, vocal and live musician features and trademark warm Jimpster production, we also think it could be his most accomplished and accessible yet.

Released February 25, 2022 – via Bandcamp here or via player link above

Next up on Rollover Milano Records in collaboration with Metatron Group is Lorenzo Morresi, a producer, DJ and guitarist. With releases on 22a Records, Fly By Night Music, Roots Underground and Wall Of Sound. His sound blend of dance music that traverses worldly vibes, jazz-funk sounds, and blazing electronica performed both as DJ set and live band. Spending his time between cities, he has performed at London audiophile hangouts Spiritland and Brilliant Corners, as well at Milan’s Apollo, gracing the airwaves of Worldwide FM, Red Light Radio, and Radio Raheem.

‘Le Bonheur‘ meaning happiness, is inspired by the 1965 movie by French director Agnes Varda. The cult movie questions the patriarchal system of the times by anticipating some of the themes of modern feminism.

The title track is an uplifting voyage, a widescreen cinematic combination of contemporary dance and sparkling vintage synth vibes alternating with the movie characters vox, and mixed up with some spaced out atmospherics to form a funk fuelled, cosmic disco gem. Boston space funksters Soul Clap flip ‘Le Bonheur’ inside out with their uber classy interpretation that floats along o a gorgeous deep house groove. With a killer bassline and an infectious squelch, this elegant cut will take the tempo high up to the stratosphere.

The Balearic inspired ‘Promenade’ is an instrumental piece filled with vintage analog vibes. Grab yourself a Negroni and plot up to watch the sunset fall, while spacey synths and atmospheric sonics envelope you in this warm and honeyed retro sound. The killer closed ‘Amour a Trois’, features French artist Gustave Robic aka Aerside who wrote the lyrics while taking his inspiration from Le Bonhuer’s male protagonist Francois. 

Released February 11, 2022 – Listen / buy here…