Kaleidoscope Productions
“We started Kaleidoscope Productions about six years ago, in 2013,” explains Ryan Kirros, one of the three founders of the label. “It was small parties we did at first, and music production wasn’t a factor yet. We were hosting stages at different events, such as silent discos and things like that.
“We all kind of met through raving; basically, we sat down one day while mixing and realized, ‘This is it. This is what we want to do’ and got straight into DJing. Ryan Dettmer, AKA Zereticz, was the producer. He’s been producing before anyone really, whereas I was the DJ. We all meshed together; from there we began hosting at events, meeting artists throughout festivals, doing renegades, and other forms of networking until it became what it is now.”
“It definitely started with us throwing parties,” adds Dettmer. “There was a community of people who had started coming around our parties and called themselves the K tribe. I asked them, ‘What’s the K tribe?’ and they told me they went to Kaleidoscope parties, and that started our whole festival family.”
“As the years progressed, I pushed us to focus more on producing and we put out a compilation last May. This (Vol 2) will be our second one and our first official release on Beatport, which also establishes us as an official label. We’ve definitely come a long way; we have a bunch of artists coming along with us that are part of our core group, as well as a bunch of new friends and artists who have thrown down on the compilation with us.”
“There are a lot of different styles of House, and one of the great things about our label is that we touch on a lot of different styles of it,” Dettmer continues. “We do house, techno, tech house, deep house, melodic techno, etc. Each artist brings their own style to the table; and when you look at a kaleidoscope, it has a lot of changing colors and that’s what we wanted for the label. For it to have all different types of house music on it – every artist brings their own style, but it still has that core House music beat.”
“Vol. 2” cover art
There is no doubt that Vol. 2 of this compilation series is a serious tour de force. “Old School” by Zereticz opens the release with a bang, showcasing the intense highs and lows tech house has to offer. Listening to this one conjures up images of the warehouse dance floor, and how impossible it would be to resist grooving to this tune.
“Dance Like This” by Fiasko and Tandros is a real party starter, creating epic tension with its robotic vocal refrain along with its driving bass beats. These elements create a surging sensation that sucks the listener deeper and deeper into the track, as the subtle elements of the high-end creating brain food for the tech heads who love to analyze minute details of tracks.
One of the most standout and interesting facets of house music is its potential for exploring the low end of the music spectrum. “Double Down” by Kirros does this in spades: bass wobbles, rising bass tones, fuzzy bass stabs… if you love bass then this is a track to get lost in. And on top of all that, he flexes his mastery of placement for all to hear and revel in.
Things get deep and trippy on Slippy Toad’s “Space Dust” trek, with bass frequencies that seem to shake the ground you’re standing on. Echoed vocal samples and ethereal atmospherics collide with a hypnotic motif that refuses to let up, putting the listener into a trance state that removes all sense of time.
Carbon Street takes us down the rawer side of the genre with “Travel”, using everything from solid beats to melodic motifs to entrance the listener. Filled with echoey atmosphere and vocals as well, it is a bit more restrained in nature but through that it further expands the listeners mind as they journey through the album.
There is nearly everything under the sun on this release, and Kaleidoscope co-founder Macheddie’s track truly shows this on “Mystico.” He crafts a tune which delicately balances the deep bass tones of modern house with the horns and swing rooting from Latin music, making for a melody that brings a fun and fresh sound to the genre. It’s rare to hear a track blend the new with the old so effortlessly as this one does.
The buildup and drop is a key element of most modern dance music, with Just Henry demonstrating some true skill in delivering this moment on “How Did You See Me.” Over and over again, he employs removing the bass to build perfect moments of tension and release, playing with each break in new and exciting ways each time. And as the bouncy bassline hits, it’s nigh impossible to stay still.
Creating a rich texture of sound is no small feat, yet ATTE nails this on their track, “Risen.” Just like the name suggests, it is a tune that evokes the sensation of slowly rising from the deepest depths into the light through use of echoed out FX stabs and serious sub bass that carries you along the track.
Ending the release on a gloriously melodic note is K!NGS, bringing us that perfect fusion of American and UK Bass music. A tune that explores both the broken surge type beats of house along with the blissful consistency the genre is known for, it ends the release with an anthemic vibe that suits the label’s mission masterfully.
Available now via Beatport, Vol. 2 by Kaleidoscope Productions is an excellent collection of house music that has something for everyone. Treat your ears by scooping it up ASAP!!!