Afro-house Grooves From New Zealand’s Julien Dyne
Fresh off his superb remix of Lord Echoes’ “The Sweetest Meditation,” well-accomplished New Zealand-based multi-instrumentalist and producer Julien Dyne has released a great new album on the Soundway label, titled Teal.
Over the past decade, Dyne has made his mark as a live performer, producer, and contributor on a number of essential recordings featuring artists like Theo Parrish, Steve Spacek, Andreya Triana and others. He also has done some notable remixes for Marcel Vogel, Ghostwave and Leroy Burgess.
This brilliant new recording features eleven tracks that blend Afro-house grooves with heavy synths and soulful vocals over multi-layered textures and jazz-influenced instrumentation. Each track keeps the listener on their toes from start to finish with unexpected breaks and complex arrangements. I see both “Copernicus” and “What You Say” tracks making it into a lot of “Best of” lists this year.
There is also a number of great guest artists on the album, including Mara TK, band-mate Ladi6, trumpeter Toby Laing, Australian vocalist Tim Guy, and prominent jazz artists Jonathan Crayford and John Bell.
Overall, Teal is an incredible album and possibly Dyne’s most adventurous to date, primed perfectly for both the dancefloor and your living room.
