the latest offering from san franciscos icee hot label finds the young imprint officially welcoming another artist to its gradually expanding roster. that said, contakt isnt exactly a stranger. the michigan-reared, new york-based producer is one of the founders and resident djs at brooklyns turrbotax® party, which has long been a sort of sister party to icee hot. contakt has previously released music for respected outposts like local action, grizzly, and dutty artz, but nobody else and tessera 04 find him taking an important step forward as an artist, delivering tunes that are richer and more really realized than anything from his past. particularly on nobody else, contakts flair for big-room melody remains intact, but he takes notes from classic kms, filling out the songs cresting synths with a full-bodied bassline, a hooky vocal sample and a sturdy rhythmic underpinning. tessera 04 goes deeper, channeling maurizio while delving headlong into a dense cloud of synths and maintaining a steady sense of forward momentum. on the flipside, icee hot resident ghosts on tape continues his recent hot streak, infusing nobody else with punchy drumwork and a potent rave sensibility. detroit legend robert hood then rounds out the release, transforming tessera 04 into a pulsing and purring slice of heady analog techno.
