It was only a matter of time until the super-prolific Kiwi producer Gene Kennedy popped up on New Zealand’s fast-rising Black Sands imprint.

Kennedy’s own label - Deep and Under - has passed 100 releases and he’s had EPs signed by such enduring and respected names as Blockhead, King St, Nite Grooves and Paper.

Hey, his first contribution to Black Sands - part of the Natural Rhythms family - lands with two exquisitely different versions.

Kicking things off is a super-charged remix by label co-founders nineteen79, the latest project from married producer and DJ partnership Bee and Ryan Tregurtha.

They’ve been making waves with a string of EPs - for Black Sands and others -  that have showcased their signatiure lush, rolling, deep/minimal sounds.

Their take is typical of their commitment to sky-high production levels. Road-tested in New Zealand’s finest house venues, the bottom end hits hard, providing the perfect bedrock for the undulating layers of synth that make the remix as good to listen to at home as in the club.

Flecked with snatches of ethereal vocal and shimmering pads, it finds another level when the mid-point breakdown ushers in a captivating and utterly wonky lead that sounds part-siren, part-horn.

Kennedy’s original mix offers a distinctly old-school flavour, perhaps not surprising given he’s been spinning vinyl for 30 years or so. The bassline has a pleasing squelch and the drums, particularly the tom rolls, have a warehouse vibe. But it’s the piano stabs - insistent but not overdone - that are most likely to induce a wistful look on an old raver’s face.

Black Sands takes its name from the volcanic beaches on New Zealand’s West Coast. Bright, warm and airy, this EP is the sound of summer, wherever you are.

The Natural Rhythms family of label also includes Grass Green Recordings, Electric Orange and Red Snapper.

Kennedy-Hey Ep

Pieces Of Me/Sinking Feeling - nineteen79

On sunny days, which is most of them, the minerals within the volcanic black sand on New Zealand’s west coast beaches catch the beams and sparkle.

Light within the darkness: A mission statement for nineteen79, the vibrant duo kicking off this new Kiwi deep tech/minimal imprint.

These two tracks shimmer with possibilities, ripple with subtly undulating synth lines and washes of effects. It’s a classy way to start any new label.

Like a languorous afternoon at one of those beaches, lead track Pieces Of Me won’t be rushed, with multiple layers of music draped atop a rock-solid rhythmic foundation. Warm and wobbly, it’s powered by some clever percussive elements and strategically deployed stabs.

Sinking Feeling is equally enveloping, while being a tad more stripped back. It grooves off a largely single-note bassline pulse and insistent bongos until the euphoric breakdown, when the bass part is extended and the pads and flecks of vocal bring the feels for the final run home.

nineteen79 have some serious chops as producers and DJs in New Zealand and beyond. This EP signals the start of a new phase of their career and showcases the work of producers in complete control of their craft. Everything is considered, nothing is extraneous. It’s time to ride their wave.

Pieces of Me EP

Sinking Feeling

nineteen79 - Sinking Feeling

Pieces of Me

nineteen79 - Pieces of Me

Building on the buzz created by their debut Pieces of Me, nineteen79 return with an absolute stomper of a release. Lead track Time Traveller is a deep, intense affair introduced by gently shuffling hats and carefully treated percussion effects before the morphing stabs and a vaguely sinister vocal hook take control. Gansta is a peak-time party starter high on kinetic energy. The arrangement is precision-built for dance floor devastation with breaks and drops and highly syncopated drum fills in the all right places. But that doesn't make it cliched. In fact one of this husband-and-wife production duo's strengths is their ability to breathe fresh life into their chosen genre. The subtle variations in the programming - particularly the bassline - surprise and delight. This is tech with a twist. Both tracks showcase the layered sound which is becoming nineteen79's trademark, with multiple expertly manipulated elements drifting in and out of the mix to main interest and momentum A first-class release. Do not sleep.

Time Traveller EP

nineteen79 - Gansta

Building on the buzz created by their debut Pieces of Me, nineteen79 return with an absolute stomper of a release. Lead track Time Traveller is a deep, intense affair introduced by gently shuffling hats and carefully treated percussion effects before the morphing stabs and a vaguely sinister vocal hook take control. Gansta is a peak-time party starter high on kinetic energy. The arrangement is precision-built for dance floor devastation with breaks and drops and highly syncopated drum fills in the all right places. But that doesn't make it cliched. In fact one of this husband-and-wife production duo's strengths is their ability to breathe fresh life into their chosen genre. The subtle variations in the programming - particularly the bass-line - surprise and delight. This is tech with a twist. Both tracks showcase the layered sound which is becoming nineteen79's trademark, with multiple expertly manipulated elements drifting in and out of the mix to main interest and momentum A first-class release. Do not sleep.

nineteen79 - Time Traveller

Like an undercover cop, the best grooves grip you before you even realise it's happened.
Hooked, lead track on nineteen79's latest dispatch from Planet Freakout, has you in a headlock well before it's finished building.
You can thank/blame an indecently funky bassline, skittering percussion and gently undulating arpeggios, drifting through the arrangement, floating in and out of reach.
Then the sound of woozy chaos. A people-losing-their shit synth riff riding a filter all the way to a breakdown that's warm, wonky, wired.
And that's when it finally drops - you're hooked.
On East Coast Roller, the buzz-baiting New Zealand duo go deep, showcasing a hitherto unheard side of their sonic expertise.
The bassline, hypnotic and - you guessed it - rolling, provides a rock-solid grounding for pulsing, propulsive off-beat analogue stabs and glassy eyed electric piano motifs, all punctuated with a tripping, gripping vocal sample.
The world isn't short of deep tech producers. This EP underlines why nineteen79 are serious contenders.

Hooked EP

East Coast Roller

Traxsource

nineteen79 - East Coast Roller

Hooked

nineteen79 - Hooked

Kennedy-Hey

Kennedy-Hey-nineteen79 remix

Beach working! nineteen79 fire the first shots of the northern hemisphere summer-to-come with a stunning salvo of super-sultry shufflers.

Title track New Day is so hot you’ll need to shower in SPF50 before listening. The bassline rolls in like the waves, the Balearic-flavoured congas slap like a beach party with your bezzies, the stabs ripple like the surface of a pool and the soulful vocals exude a positive spirituality. Sun-kissed vibes whether you’re heading towards the heat or just want to bring the bright to your dancefloor.

If New Day is the sound of the sunset, Clear The Table is a more intense trip destined for face-melting full moons. Deeper than the Kermadec Trench (look it up!) the through-line is a pulsating single-note bassline shimmering beneath reverb-drenched stabs, percussive flourishes and a mind-mangling mid-range synth riff that ramps up the nervous energy. “I’m here to say,” promises the seductive vocal. Too right - in your virtual crate for a long, long time.

So slip this in your playlist, slop on your headphones, slap it on the decks and wrap your crowd in the warmth of nineteen79’s summer of love.

Clear the Table

nineteen79 - Clear The Table

New Day

nineteen79 - New Day

Under starter’s orders - Leigh Wilkinson drops debut on Black Sands

Start your engines for Now Drive, the latest bomb from Black Sands.
Leigh Wilkinson’s first ever release widens the fast-rising Kiwi label’s sonic scope, sitting somewhere between deep tech and full-throttle nu disco.
The original mix is propelled by a pulsing, panning bass riff from the off, with crunchy claps, crisp fills and swinging shakers adding fuel to the rhythm section.
Icy synth melodies and shimmering stabs lend layers of musicality, with saucer-eyed vocal vamps supplying the soul.
The remix, by label boss nineteen79, is closer to a more traditional deep tech sound.
Additional percussion provides the swing, with the bass riff reimagined for a textured bottom end.
Filtered stabs and snatches of vocal showcase an expert use of reverbs, with a throbbing synth line kicking things into a higher gear.
Wilkinson lives in the beautiful Western Bay of Plenty, about three hours south-east of New Zealand’s biggest city, Auckland. He DJs in the Bay - and beyond.

Leigh Wilkinson - Now Drive (nineteen79 Remix)

Leigh Wilkinson - Now Drive (Original)

Auckland-based Black Sands is a showcase for the deep tech movement bringing the underground vibes to New Zealand’s never-hotter electronic music production scene.

A platform for established producers and rising stars, the label is part of the Natural Rhythms family of imprints that also includes Grass Green and Electric Orange.

Its mission is heady, smooth minimal grooves - shimmering synths riding precision-tooled bottom ends. Ride the wave!

Black Sands

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