Swayzak

Taking a break from the recording of their third album, Swayzak contributed a volume for another in !K7's ongoing series of mix series; this double-disc set, titled Groovetechnology, is a joint effort with the essential online dance connection Groovetech. On tap, for over two hours of mix time, is smooth, slinky atmospheric tech-house, mostly from German labels -- Perlon, Force Tracks, Ladomat, Mille Plateaux -- with the same less-is-more philosophy. (There's a reason they call it micro-house.) The first disc begins with some great selections, moving from the pile-driving percussion fills and disinterested vocal on Pile's "World Record Holder" into the dub crackle of Akufen's perfectly titled "Architexture." Swayzak strings a few too many similar tracks (all overly polished) in the middle of the first set before switching up with a nice track from Delay 05 (a Safety Scissors/Sutekh split). Following are a few tracks with more personality, like Luomo's "Synkro" and CiM's "RNA." The second disc is also of a piece, but with stronger tracks driving it: the moody paranoia of Convextion and Monolake, Mike Ink's Studio 1 track "Lila," and a stray novelty like "Take My Soul" by Bergheim 34. Most good house DJs know how to bring a crowd up and down over the course of a few hours; Swayzak pursues a different philosophy here, stacking so many like-minded tracks that Groovetechnology, Vol. 1.3 is much more a trance-inducer than a floor-filler. ~ John Bush, All Music Guide