The announcement of this release was planned for late February. But, sadly, this February will be remembered for some other reasons. The full-scale war with Russia affected every single person in Ukraine and the Hypnohouse label, which is based in my hometown Lviv and also Kyiv, couldn’t be an exception. DJ 69, the founder of the label, almost immediately after 24.02 started to volunteer like crazy with his Kyiv Angels crew (by the way, one of the best directions to donate money if you want to help). Still, it was said, that they will return to HPNHS004 when they have a minute. I guess, they managed to spare a few secs so we could finally hear this gorgeous compilation, the first one after their inaugural release. Which – small detail – was announced just after the sound of another round of air raid alerts in Lviv and Kyiv. Our reality in Ukraine right now.
victor.b (formerly known as Vybukhivka), who’s visiting our premieres section today, is a well-known figure inside Ukraine. Representing Odesa and delivering some very nice live performances – I can easily recall the Halloween party in Lviv last year, where he played after Quest, or a just recent charity event – also in Lviv, just a few weeks ago. But this specific track has its own, more personal story…
Last summer we both played in Closer at a TYSK party, the whole night was dedicated to the broken UK sound, the whole line-up was from Ukraine. It was, I can easily say – the hottest day (and night) in Kyiv in 2021, and, after opening the night with the set, it was very difficult to wait for him (I wanted to finally check the all-around buzz about the guy). Well, around 4 at night (or morning, as you wish), he finally started and what a relief it was. Like, some kind of a cold shower – not because of the shock, but because of the combination of the heat around and his sounds. Still one of my favorite moments at Lesnoy Prichal (especially when he dropped then-unknown “Proskater”).
So, after hearing the tracks on this compilation, the choice was made almost momentarily. “Proskater” is a great piece of Victor’s signature sound, with all that interesting clicks and scratches (not THAT scratches) that are leading you to that first small melody drop (I swear, it sounds so great in the heat!). The second melodic drop comes with the beat and that’s the moment when the crowd usually goes nuts (tested!). After that we’re having 4 minutes of the variations on the main theme. And don’t forget the main moment at 3:39 also…
We had to pick only one track here and that made me a bit sad because the A1 here is also great. Easily one of the best works by AC130 (hiding here under Yaroslav M moniker). “Eternity (Sunshine Dub)” is a very pacey piece, also quite signature for him that will hit hard on the crowd in its second part (also tested!). Continuing with the new monikers – on the B1 we have Hopper F (or Hopper Field, or even Vlad Stuparenko), part of the Criminal Practice crew with his track without a name (but with a number). “Untitled 05” is a trippy piece of the minimalistic roller, designed to interact with the crowd at the end of the party. Or at the beginning, depends on you.
The final one here is kinda a big deal, since we have a debut of the label’s owner DJ 69. With his partner in crime AC130, under the name of Count Orlok, they are presenting us something that grew from their home jam and is called “In The Shadows”.
Well, I know, the record was played a lot in Ukraine before 24.02 and I hope, that it will be spun worldwide during this summer (just don’t forget about the pre-orders on Juno, Deejay or Decks). And we’ll catch you up, guys, a little bit later, after our victory.
More information on victor.b
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More information on Hypnohouse
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This article was written in Ukraine. Ukraine is in the middle of the war with Russia right now. Would be great if you could donate to the biggest Ukrainian volunteer fund here. Also, you can pick any music initiative, that is also trying to help from our list here. We’ll be stronger together.
