Henrik Schwarz / Various - "Dj Kicks" [!K7]

At least for one time during our existence, we happened the occasion to listen Henrik Schwarz's name that is strictly linked with Berliner Innervisions, especially thanks for his recent success, "Where We At?", produced together with Dixon and Âme. Of course we can't limit ourselves in drawing on from a release because it is necessary to know the musical background behind which he has been grown. It talks about a guy from southern Germany, born in Ravensburg, a town known for the many jazz festivals, who, starting from a passion for rock music, he will choose funk and soul as cornerstones of his music finding in the groove a particular form of energy and decisive to move his musical horizons. During the following years, that is the 90's, Germany has just been invaded by contaminations of electronic and techno music, but it is very surprising to understand how a rare-groove listener succeeded to incorporate, inside his repertoire, a modern musical trend so different from the other ones previously mentioned: the decisive episode was one of the first dj sets held in Germany by legendary dj Jeff Mills from Detroit, wherein he will find in his way to play, based on improvisation, a strict connection with jazz musicians. This led him to begin the road of music productions but in a first moment the tracks were exclusively aimed at his live dj sets, because of the lack of tools at that time. At the end of that decade this man finally will succeed to buy his first laptop but he also realizes of the enormous potential of this tool when he begins to use it during his sessions creating live loops, effects and sounds, afterward putting it together with a sampler and an electronic drum. Once he finishes his school studies, Henrik Schwarz moves to Berlin but, despite of his job as a graphic designer, he succeed to delve into his musical research. He meets Sasse, thanks for an impressive demo given some time before, who persuades him to release his first projects on his own label, Moodmusic. It is the year 2002 and at last it has been released "Supavision ep" which will lead him to success especially thanks for Gilles Peterson who properly promotes it through his radio show on BBC Radio 1. After a very little time Sasse and the same Henrik establish Sunday Music, whose name come from the fact that the second one was able to dedicate time for producing only on Sunday because of his work commitments. He meets the definitive success thanks for "Chicago", second release on Moodmusic, and he becomes one of the most requested remixers of the moment thanks for the refinement and the peculiarity of his tracks. The "Dj Kicks" in question is properly his first mixed compilation; all the tracks chosen, from the first to the last, express the eclecticism of this dj/producer that handles every kind of music which we mentioned before: funk, soul, jazz, house, electronic and techno. The session is opened by "Bird's Lament" which leads us to a Teutonic, dull and melancholic atmosphere, immediately followed by an overwhelming hurricane of sound waves through the intro made by Henrik Schwarz himself. It goes back to peacefulness and the first part is mainly centred on the funk, soul, deep roots of the author, because of the presence of some tracks like Double - "Woman Of The World", Io – "Claire", D'Angelo "Spanish Joint" and James Brown "Since You've Been Gone". After the inclusion of an his live version of "Jon", we go back to rare groove with Jae Mason's "Let It Out" and with the magnificent Cymande's "Atrancite". At the tenth track, that is in the middle of the compilation, it gets down into the dim darks with "Imagination Limitation", produced on purpose for Dj Kicks, and a techno classic as Drexciya "Black Sea", but we suddenly find ourselves into a joyful African rain forest thanks to Amampondo – "Giya Kasiamore". After we just relaxed for some minutes with "Walk A Mile In My Shoes" remix, we return to the dance floor with Robert Hood's "The Core", and we will meet again the same atmosphere created through the reading of a famous novel like Konrad's "Heart Of Darkness" as well as we listen the afro vocal of ""Chant Avec Citare". This bolt from the blue turns off with the no.16 and we find a series of tracks that can bring us towards existential reflection and it is worthwhile to focus on "Get Around It" performed by Arthur Russell, Womack & Womack's "Conscious Of My Conscience" and at the end the dub version of Rhythm & Sound's "Let Jah Love Come". The choice of the final track must hung over on Marvin Gaye's, who is one of the biggest soul music interpreters, "You're The Man", but we can shut down our cd player only after Henrik's outro that is precisely useful to underline the closure of this phantom ritual started under his sign at the beginning of his selection. This "Dj Kicks" is the existential demonstration of a very versatile music selection that, despite of risky attempt of conciliating the extremes, it succeeds to be an flow of emotions and feelings impossible to arrest.

Tracklist CD (mixed):
1. Intro
2. Moondog - "Bird's Lament"
3. Double - "Woman Of The World" (long instrumental version)
4. Io - "Claire"
5. D'Angelo - "Spanish Joint"
6. James Brown - "Since You've Been Gone"
7. Henrik Schwarz - "Jon" (live in London)
8. Jae Mason - "Let It Out"
9. Cymande - "Anthracite"
10. Henrik Schwarz - "Imagination" (DJ Kicks Limitation mix 1)
11. Drexciya - "Black Sea"
12. Amampondo - "Giya Kasiamore"
13. Coldcut - "Walk A Mile In My Shoes" (feat Robert Owens - Henrik Schwarz remix)
14. Robert Hood - "The Core"
15. Artist Unknown - "Chant Avec Cithare" (track 1)
17. Pharoah Sanders - "Summun Bukmun Umyun"
18. Luther Davis Group - "You Can Be A Star"
19. Arthur Russel - "Get Around To It"
20. Womack & Womack - "Conscious Of My Conscience"
21. Rhythm & Sound - "Let Jah Love Come" (with Sugar Minott)
22. Doug Hammond - "Wake Up Brothers"
23. Marvin Gaye - "You're The Man" (alternate version 2)
24. Outro

Tracklist LP:
1. Moondog - "Bird's Lament"
2. Double - "Woman Of The World" (long instrumental version)
3. Io - "Claire"
4. D'angelo - "Spanish Joint"
5. Drexciya - "Black Sea"
6. Luther Davis Group - "You Can Be A Star"
7. Arthur Russell - "Get Around To It"
8. Rhythm & Sound - "Let Jah Love Come" (feat Sugar Minott)
9. Artist Unknown - "Chant Avec Cithare"
10. Womack & Womack - "Conscious Of My Conscience"
11. Cymande - "Anthracite"
12. Doug Hammond - "Wake Up Brothers"