#dj normal 4

My first encounter with DJ Normal 4 came only this year, when Second Circle dropped the incredible Exoticz EP. In the time since that release, I have taken a deep dive into Tim Schumacher’s sonic world as well as that of Aiwo Records, collecting every original cut and remix that I can find. It’s been an amazing journey through galaxies of funky acid, esoteric rave, and inventive breakbeats and everything the Aiwo crew touches seems to give off intense vibrations of psychedelic euphoria while also moving the body towards total bliss. The most recent cut from DJ Normal 4 comes courtesy of Needs, a label I love supporting because the profits from each release are given in total to organizations seeking to better the world. This time around the proceeds go to Mind, a UK based mental health charity, and DJ Normal 4 contributes “Return of the Hooligans,” which brilliantly reworks and transforms Da Hool’s hard trance classic “Meet Her at the Love Parade” into a cosmic breakbeat odyssey. But that’s not all, as Red Axes and Hodge also appear, with the former overlaying a storming house beat with alien liquids, ecstatic voices, and vibrant hand percussion while the latter surrounds tribal drum rituals and huge kick patterns with psychedelic whistle tones and ambient feedback spirals.

DJ Normal 4 / Red Axes / Hodge - Needs 005 (Needs, 2018) Dark swirling pads set the mood in “Return of the Hooligans” while animalistic acid textures background a hypnotizing synth line, ricocheting toms, 16th note hats, and skipping sub-kicks. Once the full beat drops, with open hats and vibing snares jamming out, we find ourselves in a sci-fi breakbeat glide that would make Underground Resistance proud. Off-beat basslines bubble beneath the acid storm and reversed drum loops lead to a rhythmic drop out where haunted music box melodies flow above cracking snare hypnotics and eventually, Da Hool’s familiar trance hook appears, only here it’s made more percussive and mystical as the playful 90s leaning fifth note fx are dialed down in favor of vibes of exotic space travel. There is so much rhythmic magic flowing underneath it all, with snares and claps firing off in dazzling patterns and sub-bass blasts moving huge columns of air. Sometimes the trance riff is replaced by zoned out acid stabs recalling the KLF’s “What Time Is Love?” and during a moment where the kick drums pull back, a shadowy string and choir symphony fades in, bringing with it a ghostly energy. Elsewhere, the atmospheric elements drop out leaving the breakbeats and massive sub-aquatic bass bursts to support Da Hool’s intergalactic rave hook, which soon gives way to resonant Moog sequences and morphing LFO fx. Wooden hand drums bounce around the mix and disorienting reptilian acid gurgles hover as the bouncing bassline returns alongside the trance lead, with its hypnotic repetitions and hallucinogenic percolations stoking vibes of dark dancefloor enchantment. 

Next comes “Treacksheni” by Red Axes, with rattling hi-hats and a crushing four-four beat stomping beneath extra-terrestrial static fx that pan around the mix. Militant shakers add further hypnotic motions and ascending electro-bubbles are stretched and morphed in disorienting ways, eventually establishing some sort of otherworldy melody as the song comes to life all around, with throbbing sub-bass currents and tropical hand drum cascades. There are thrilling moments where mystical voices dance on rainbow clouds and then recede, allowing liquid chime tones to revel in a dark cloud of club humidity. As well, Red Axes jams out for extended sections of percussion heavy magic, with vibrant hand drum layers morphing into minimalist polyrhythms alongside massive claps. Metallic fluids seems to twist and mutate in strange ways and a sudden transition introduces insectoid sequences…as if some sort of Indian string instrument has been fed through mysterious machines from another dimension. But these buzzing tones of ecstasy soon cut out and all that’s left is an enigmatic drum outro where entrancing percussive panoramas fly around amorphous bass currents.

Hodge’s “Signal” revels in ceremonial drum rituals backed by thunderous house rhythms, with city leveling kick drums marching through an electrified haze of hissing static. Whistle tones lock into drunken loops with intensifying reverb modulations and flutey pads let out long atmospheric drones. Delirious sonic layers overlap and industrial smashes accent the pounding beat intensity until the kick drops away, leaving tribal hand drums to wander through a world of atmospheric shadows and crazed birdsong mutations. Once we smash cut back into the overhwhelming bass drum sorcery, snippets of voices drift in the background ether and the extra-terrestrial whistles wiggle in place while cascading cymbal patterns hypnotize the mind. Echoing claps set up a punishing drop where ethereal bell tones join physical bursts of white noise mimicking snare hits and after another radical clap transition, the track transitionsto a passage of dissonant percussive wonder as all sorts of feedback sparkles and looping light flashes dance around galloping kick drums, while breathy chants, echoing voices, and sonic clouds hitting like thunderclaps move through the mix.