Cogo, the Slovenian Techno promotion crew and label headed up by brothers Josip Križnič (Assembler), Antonio Križnič (Tonske), and friend Matija Vovk (Mac-10), put forth their first vinyl various-artists compilation. As a fledgling vinyl label but well established regional crew, this makes a strong foray into the international techno scene by incorporating strong artistic choices and equally strong established artists.
For your first VA, what do you go with to really send a message about your label? A scatter shotgun approach trying to lump tons of well known names in a digital compilation? Or do you go out of your way to find some music you really like and artists that have consistently put out creatively driven techno? There are many who try to go with the grapeshot approach– maybe one or two tracks are good on the 29-track digital VA comp (and the Beatport servers are swamped with these releases). Few go for the highly selected and pared down approach by showcasing it on a handsome vinyl release. Thankfully, Cogo proves you can do it your way and shine out among the fluff with a great set of tracks by Stanislav Tolkachev, Kemppi, Kennedy, and their own Tonske.
First release on the comp is from Stanislav Tolkachev titled “Tell the Truth and Run.” You can immediately hear it has a classic vibe. Old school first wave ’93-4 Midwest minimal meets Neil Landstrumm’s “Praline Horse” remixes, or Tobias Schmidt off Tresor that same year, just a little less wild and facing more of a heads down, hypnotic vibe to keep the current dance floor flowing.
Second cut is up from Inigo Kennedy, “Lucid,” which is a synth driven hypnotic affair with kick and chattering echoed hats driving the beat. Strong filtered low, mid, and hi arps with high bells, soft saws, and liquid resonant bass punctuate the mix, each taking turns to accentuate their role in the mix. By the end of the track one may experience a complete loss of awareness.
Samuli Kemppi’s “Trees Below the Surface” is the sneaker of the compilation with the cascading high hats squeezed down with filter and the delay’s release time messing with your head; hinting at a shepherd tone, but sans pitch. The bass ties in well with Kennedy’s track here as well. Squashed and filtered synth hits are pushed into soupy reverb while the kick and its tail are poking and prodding forward in a lowkey and subtly funky manner. The track finishes super strong with bell hits in what sounds like some serious filter envelope play.
-Sean Ocean
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