Farbwechsel goes vinyl: Route 8/Black Mold/Basic House/S Olbricht

Published February, 2015
by Easterndaze

Farbwechsel’s inaugural vinyl release aims high. This compilation contains 4 tracks, 2 of them Farbwechsel’s core (Route8/S Olbricht) alongside their likeminded fellows. Opal Tapes spiritual leader Stephen Bishop is joined by a mutual project of Patricia and Lumigraph called Black Mold. It is obvious that Farbwechsel and Opal Tapes have lot of things in common. Several of Farbwechsel’s producers have already released their work on this cult UK label and the sound of both sports a similar, murky, hazy and lo-fi approach that has became their trademark.  

The album opener, a track called MDMD by Hungarian producer Route 8 is a standard, lo-fi house affair with catchy rhythms and dreamy pads, epitomising the sound that has become characteristic for the Budapest imprint. I would say that I am already bored with this sound, as I know about the unquestionable talent of the Hungarian scene which transgresses the formulaic, but this is a vinyl release. Which means that it is designed for club use, for DJ’s to play and it will be definitely good to hear this track on the dancefloor. It is a bit difficult to play stuff from the tapes when throwing a party (although not impossible). The stuff is groovy as hell and definitely a great DJ material. 

Virginia Slim by Black Mold is a slow, hypnotic number with rhythms and lo-fi production, which gives the entire track a really mysterious and dusty atmosphere. Despite the fact that track is decent, I probably had slightly bigger expectations from the collaboration of some of my favourite producers and I was slightly disappointed by the outcome.
Olbricht’s Flanhat is probably the most experimental track on the release with an idiosyncratic atmosphere and waves of broken rhythms running through each other in a swift tempo. Olbricht’s talent for catchy melodies owes much to the sound of Detroit and early Chicago house tunes and is transformed through hissy ambience and pads into his typically mutated dance hybrid. Basic House and his Boxlord offers the most uplifting track with a crystal clear sound and crunchy rhythm. This is the bona fide banger of the release that can find its place in DJ sets of any techno DJ.

This compilation might not the best thing that Farbwechsel has put out. However, it serves perfectly as a sampler and little introduction into the world of both labels, that are perhaps still unknown to wider audiences. And for this purpose, it is definitely a great medium. I would like to encourage the listeners to dive deeper into the catalogues of both labels though.

By b.arctor