dj hell: kern vol 2

Hot on the heels of DJ Deep's inaugural Kern (KERN 001CD) mix for Tresor comes Kern Vol. 2, selected and mixed by Gigolos boss DJ Hell. Hell has a track record of releasing benchmark mixes, most notably the wildly eclectic mix for Belgian club FUSE in 2000, and 1995's X-Mix 5: Wildstyle, whose concept he feels is not far away from Kern Vol. 2. For Vol. 2 the Munich/Berlin machine dug deep into his vast collection to unite early house and techno with the new wave. Detroit minimalism is represented by Robert Hood's "Sleep Cycles," originally released in 1994 on the limited Minimal Nation EP, and Daniel Bell, who appears with an unreleased "Chicago Style" version of his evergreen 1992 track, "Blip." Kenny Larkin's epic "War of the Worlds" also features. It's an old favorite of Hell's and he describes it as "very emotional." New York's Joey Beltram makes an appearance as Code 6 with "Quad 1," an irresistibly dark slice of Nu Groove house. But Kern Vol. 2 isn't just about the old school and Hell has included tracks from new producers like Recondite and Jonas Kopp. Hell's background in harder-edge sounds predates the launch of Gigolos in the late '90s, and he welcomes its resurgence. Kern Vol. 2 also showcases some tracks that didn't get recognition the first time round. The churning, throbbing bass of Literon's 2006's "Machine 1" is one such track, one of the many projects of Dutch producer Gerd. Another obscurity is the Afro-acid groove of No Smoke's "Koro Koro." Hell spent a lot of time trying to trace the artist behind the project and offers the following observation: "They are from London and this was released between 1988 and 1989, but I am not sure of their identity," he says. Other artists include: Odori, Dan Diamond, Peace Division, Dark Comedy, DJ Yoav B., The Horrorist, QX1 (feat. Emanuel Pipen), SubCulture, Inner City, Halogen, Major Problems, Jonas Kopp, Shivers, DJ Spookie, Steve Poindexter, N.Y. Connection, DBX, Lisa Cadena, Sebastian San, and Capracara.