DJ OF THE WEEK 5.5.14: DETROIT SWINDLE

Their name is Detroit Swindle yet Lars Dales and Maarten Smeets are from the Netherlands. Of course, house music being a universal thing, it makes no difference where they’re from, for these two cats get it and they get it deeply. I guess that’s where the swindle part of their name comes from.

Known for their mature house sound, you’d think Detroit Swindle had a decade or so under their belts, at least collectively. Surprising fact is they have only been on the scene for just over a couple of years, and I do mean couple as in two. In fact, their first release only came about in 2012 because a friend of theirs submitted one of their still incomplete works to a record label. Turns out its owner liked it so much he emailed them almost immediately to sign them. The rest as they say is history, even if it is relatively recent.

Both Lars and Smeets have a love affair with music going back to their youth, and coincidentally, they are both huge Motown fans, hence the Detroit part of the name. Lars has been DJing for well over a decade while Smeets is a newbie behind the decks in comparison. However, put these two in the studio and it doesn’t take long for one to realize they are not some one dimensional overnight success story; their productions as well as their remixes prove this. Just pop in and play their first official EP ‘Guess What,’ or the funky ‘The Passion’ or ‘Huh, What,’ and hear for yourself. Notable remixes include the funkdafied ‘Knockard Pearl’ from Medlar, Miguel Migs ‘Over Me,’ Kraak & Smaak’s ‘The Future Is Yours,’ Deep Future’s ‘You Need It,’ just to name a few. All serve to drive home the fact even futher that these two cats are not a trick.

Along with that Motown influence heard deep in their cuts, one can also feel the energy these two cats bring. An energy which translates to their live shows. The pair has already gigged at some of the hottest underground non mega clubs in the world as well as the occasional festival. From the UK’s Bixon club and Fabric, Club Seven in Den Haag, Netherlands, New York’s Output and the Grasshopper located in the actual Detroit, it is no exaggeration when I say DS is already an underground favorite.

DS has a busy 2014 ahead having just released their first full length album, Boxed Out (available in mp3, CD, and of course vinyl on Amazon and also on iTunes). Comprised of more of that subtle Motown influence it also packs plenty of others sounds such as soul and Hip hop. The resulting sound is being classified as deep house for the most part, but whatever you call it, it is already garnering plenty of support from fellow DJs and the underground press, as well as new fans. So you know they must be legit, right?

Well, don’t worry, they are.

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