Gesaffelstein Variations

Turbo celebrates the 10th anniversary of Gesaffelstein’s seminal work on the
Montreal-based imprint with a long-awaited repress of all three EPs: Variations,
Conspiracy Pt. 1, and Conspiracy Pt. 2.
Every track on 'Variations' is a battle-tested bomb. Gesaffelstein’s sound is clearly
influenced by New Wave and the Gigolo-era electro (2001-2) of fellow Frenchmen
The Hacker and David Carretta, but it sounds like a fresh update rather than
pastiche, revitalized and refined down to a modern and versatile core. These tracks
work in Tiga's festival sets alongside some of the summer's biggest anthems, yet are
equally at home in a more underground setting, e.g. Von Party's 5am warm-up
before Ivan Smagghe at a London warehouse party.
The title track has the most attitude, establishing a palette of dark staccato basslines,
crunching hi-hats, hands-in-the-air cowbells and trippy synth leads. Selected Faces
and Atmosphere are arguably even more straightforward club weapons, their
breakdowns creating just enough 'insanity' without getting annoying, their grooves
dropping back in with a cool, restrained power that will win over hiss-weary DJs.
With remixes upcoming for Turbo and Institubes, a follow-up EP for Turbo in the
works... if you want an idea as to how big Gesaffelstein will get this year, just think of
him as 'Brodinkelstein.'