True Spirits [www.inspiritmusic.com]

You can never keep your eye off the deep house scene for long, before some label or artist emerges to shake things up a bit, and one such label that is sure to make a big impact on the global scene this year are Inspirit Music. The reason? Inspirit is a label that emphasises musical quality, but over a broad spectrum of music, be it deep house, jazzy beats, 2-step or downtempo. Whatever your preference though, with these guys, you just know it's gonna be good.

One step into the Inspirit Studio and you're into the heart and soul of the entire organisation. In most cases original with vocals are produced in-house, and resident engineer Max, a.k.a The Beard, is always on hand, infusing the studio with his hard work and ear for quality. Production values have been boosted even further in recent months, with the arrival of their new Carillon system driving the Yamaha 02R and all the outboard!

Of course you don't have to be in the studio to enjoy the Inspirit Music experience, with an ever-increasing array of event and club activities around the UK. This autumn, following several successful dates with Andy Caldwell and Fred Everything, the Inspirit boys should be bringing over some great US talent, for a mini-UK tour. Still to be confirmed… Deep House Network will be keeping you bang up to date with all the details.

And if you're wondering how they have time to cram this all in, maybe we should mention they've just started a brand new monthly radio show called the InSoul Sessions as well. Although only starting off in the UK, on Solar Radio, Sky Digital Ch. 879, the guys have big plans for the show. They're currently working on getting the show syndicated to several territories around the world, even Sarejevo's Radio 3!!

As mentioned before, the credo of Inspirit Music remains quality, but with such a broad spectrum of music, be it deep house, jazzy beats, 2-step or downtempo, there's something for even the fussiest of underground tastes. Radio and DJ play has been plentiful from around the world with guys such as Marques Wyatt, Ben Watt and even Laurent Garnier all picking up on their house sound, while other tastemakers such as Gilles Peterson and Patrick Forge have been to pick up on some of their more cutting edge tracks such as the Phuturistix remix of The Beard's "Someday".

You can look forward to a flavour of all of these genres in their forthcoming releases. They have a keen sense of quality control, as Bob Haynes explains, "We issue deep house and the 2-step is always intelligent and soulful. These genres can exist side by side and Inspirit Music will push them as such". After the original tune is in the can, remixes are then commissioned to best capture both sides of Inspirit Music. With deep house artists such as Andy Caldwell (Naked Music) and Kaskade (Om Records), as well as more diverse producers such as Landslide on the remix, the future looks very bright indeed for this small but ambitious label.

Let us introduce you to some of the singers, producers and remixers from the Inspirit camp…

The Beard

Inspirit Music's in-house engineer and DJ, The Beard produces deep, musical house, influenced by US labels such as Naked Music, Guidance and Om Records. He also enjoys some remixes for other labels, as well as a few more progressive house outfits under the alias "Mike Finnegan". And as if that wasn't enough he's also busy working on several broken / 2-step mixes under his "Spectre" guise. The Beard isn't abandoning his deep house roots any time soon though, and may even come up with some more 'chilled' sounds in the future.

Recommended listening:

The Beard - Someday (5 o'clock shadow dub) - Inspirit Music
Amma - On My Own (The Beard's 2-day Growth mix) - Inspirit Music
Soul Sista - Only You (Mike Finnegan mix) - appears on Jon Marsh - Fabric Live CD

Amma

Previously known as Kamini, but now assuming her own name once again, singer/songwriter Amma Sarfo has certainly paid her dues. She began singing at a stage school at only 3, youth choir at 6, and got her first recording contract with Easy Jam five years ago. Not bad for a 22 year old. Her recent track with The Beard "Someday" was even awarded a 5/5 'recommended buy' in Mixmag. Amma is equally at ease with r'n'b, soul, jazzy 2-step, deep house or nu jazz - keep an eye out for her new releases over the coming months and look forward to her possible forthcoming longplayer on Inspirit.

Recommended listening:

Amma - On My Own (Kaskade mix) - Inspirit Music
The Beard ft. Kamini - Someday (Phuturistix mix) - Inspirit Music (also appears on Om Lounge 6)
Amma - Remember - Inspirit Music

Soul Sista

This 23 year old South African singer/songwriter began her career as a backing singer for African pop group 'Crowded Crew'. Her musical influences however soon developed into deep house, hip-hop and kwaito, going on to perform live PA's at Sublime (Johannesburg) and label nights including those of Guidance Records. Her first introduction to the UK, visiting a Naked Music Party in London, didn't disappoint and we can look forward to plenty of Soul Sista at upcoming Inspirit Music.

Recommended listening:

Soul Sista - Only You - Inspirit Music
Soul Sista - Musication (Andy Caldwell mix) - Inspirit Music
Soul Sista - Only You (Sequel mix) - Inspirit Music

Bobtrax

Bobtrax has run his own studio since leaving school, so he'd know a thing a thing or two about music. An exponent of jazzy 2-step / deep house fusion in the Landslide and Phuturistix vein, Bob Haynes (a.k.a Bobtrax) has forged his own sound whilst keeping an open mind to quality music. His music continues to raise eyebrows with the more discerning 2-step crowd, jazz heads such as Gilles Peterson, and the breaks scene talent alike. Bobtrax has remixed The Beard (Someday), and is currently in the studio finishing several other tracks with Amma and Soul Sista.

Recommended listening:

The Beard - Someday (Bobtrax mix)- Inspirit Music
Soul Sista - Paradise (Bobtrax mix) - Inspirit Music

Andy Caldwell

Bay Area native Andy Caldwell has become one of the most promising names in deep house for quite a while, following the release of the seminal "I Can't Wait". He's a multi-talented individual who began playing trumpet and piano and now turns his hand at songwriting, producing, and DJing. After fantastic success with US label Om, as well as Naked Music, we can now look forward to some more quality Caldwell material, both originals and remixes, from the Inspirit camp. Keep it comin' !

Recommended listening:

Amma - On My Own (Andy Caldwell mix) - Inspirit Music
Andy Caldwell - All I Need - Naked Music
Andy Caldwell - Quiet Nights - Om Records

Kaskade

Kaskade is the brainchild of new American deep house producer Ryan Raddon. Born in the suburbs of Chicago, his interest in house music developed with the very birthplace of the music in the 80's. Now based in San Fran, he has become increasingly established in the global scene with releases on Naked Music, Om Records and Afterhours. He has DJed with Mark Farina, Miguel Migs and Jay J and it has taken him all over the West Coast, Canada and Korea. His Inspirit Music debut, "This Rhythm", is out soon, and will be followed up by both original material and remix duties for Inspirit, in both the deep house and jazzy 2-step style.

Recommended listening:

Kaskade - This Rhythm - Inspirit Music
Amma - Heartbeat (Kaskade mix) - Inspirit Music
Kaskade - Sounds Of Om 3 - Om Records

Landslide

Landslide, or Tim Land to his mates, produces breakbeat and 2-step, beginning with some co-writing and programming for London Elektricity's "Pull The Plug" album. Never one to follow the more obvious tracks, his sound matured further with the release of his debut LP, "Drum+Bossa" - encompassing breakbeat, Brazilian, Latin jazz and off-beat breaks. His brave musical stance has not been ignored in the dance/eclectic community, with DJs like Jazzanova, Zed Bias, Tom Middleton, EZ, Dego and Gilles Peterson among the people who "get it". Now Landslide has turned out some remixes for the Inspirit camp, reworking Amma's "On My Own". Tim brings the same individualistic vision to his live show, incorporating multi-media effects from long-time partners Audio Rom. Don't miss it.

Recommended listening:

Amma - On My Own (Landslide mix) - Inspirit Music
Kaidi Tatham - Betcha Did (Landslide mix) - Bitasweet
Nitin Sawnhey - Cold & Intimate (Landslide mix) - V2

Check out InspiritMusic at ... www.inspiritmusic.com