- Cutting edge Latin-inflected techno with jaw-dropping remixes from Pearson Sound and Doctor Jeep.
- It feels like the zeitgeist, whatever that means, is converging on Nick León. Miami's bustling dance music scene, with a host of producers making new names for themselves, is on everyone's lips, as Latin club sounds—from reggaeton to dancehall to dembow to perreo—have captured the attention of DJs from across the globe. Enter Xtasis, an EP that lands on a label that has become crucial to this hybrid Latin sound (TraTraTrax), with enviable timing. Oh, and the remixes. With reworks from Pearson Sound and drum & bass mad scientist Doctor Jeep, León's reach and appeal is wider than ever before, and Xtasis is the peak of a long and tenacious climb.
Each of León's original tracks focuses on a different style of Latin American club music, another hallmark of a producer who borrows and combines regional sounds into something currently being called "Latin tribal techno." The title cut is a collaboration with Venezuela's DJ Babatr, who specializes in raptor house. The manic four-on-the-floor thrust is accented by swung snares and hats, and the whole track gallops at a rapid clip, both broken and straight-ahead. Then an absolutely killer organ bassline comes in and pushes it into overdrive, but it's not just pure mid-range pleasure. Listen closely and you'll hear a bright, brittle chime melody in the background, a great example of the layers of detail León injects into even his clubbiest cuts, a remnant from his earlier, more atmospheric work.
"Grito" sets its sights on the hard-edged stomp of tribal guarachero, with pitched-down vocals and discordant, time-stretched melodies lending it hulking techno feeling. It's like the Mexican subgenre, steel-plated. Doctor Jeep's remix of "Grito" amps up the adrenaline, speeding up the tempo towards a heart-stopping climax before plunging into drum & bass—a thrill ride every time. Pearson Sound takes MVP here, with a remix of the title track that pulls out all the right pieces as if it were a precarious Jenga tower. The drum pattern is more broken, the samples gleefully pulled apart, the vocals weirder, the breakdowns numerous. Once the organ bassline finally comes in, all bets are off—it reminds me of when Pearson Sound tracks like "XTC" or "Untitled" used to rule dance floors, but that was a different time. Now, it's Nick León's game.
トラックリスト01. Xtasis feat. DJ Babatr
02. Xtasis feat. DJ Babatr (Pearson Sound Remix)
03. Grito
04. Grito (Doctor Jeep Hyperactive Mix)