“Whoever’s in charge of A&R at Anjunadeep deserves a pay rise”
To find out the answer to that question we don’t have to look far. James Grant, brother of Above & Beyond’s Jono Grant, takes on the A&R responsibilities at London’s Anjunadeep. Of course this comes alongside fellow label chief Jody Wisternoff and together they handpicked the sixth edition of Anjunadeep, aptly titled Anjunadeep 06 which is a collection of a whopping 30+ tracks and is officially out today on iTunes. For those not close to the music industry, A&R stands for “Artists and Repertoire” and it is the division of a record label that is responsible for talent scouting and overseeing the artistic development of recording artists and songwriters. In essence, Resident Advisor is saying the Anjunadeep team did a fantastic job of selecting and cultivating artists on its roster and in my opinion this is especially evident with the release of Anjunadeep 06.
Last week I posted a couple tracks on Anjunadeep 06, by Deep House masters 16 Bit Lolitas (called the Deep In My Soul EP – LISTEN HERE) – but that was merely the tip of the iceberg. Anjunadeep, as a label, has been gaining steam over the years and with the release of 06 it’s clear they put a lot more muscle behind promotion, marketing, and quality control. The boys over at Above & Beyond have even been talking about the release for weeks during their Group Therapy podcasts, and if you haven’t been listening you can surely bet they’ve been playing plenty of tracks from it as well. Even the official Anjunadeep 06 website was carefully crafted with visually appealing design, to help the viewer both see and feel the vibes coming from today’s release.
While I haven’t had a chance to listen to the entire album front to back, I have had a chance to enjoy many of the selections made available in podcasts, on YouTube, and streaming in SoundCloud (see below). While the album contains songs from many artists I’m only now discovering, one theme remains the same: Deep, Soulful, and Melodic House music. As someone who spends his weekdays at a 9-5 job, there was no better way to unwind after a long Monday than with Anjunadeep 06. Unlike most of the music we post here at MMIBTY, most of the 30+ songs on this album are not meant for the clubs nor for getting your parties started. Instead, Anjunadeep 06 is perfect for sunsets, beaches, lounges, relaxation, spending time with that special someone, and anything else that the deepest of Deep House is meant for. The album contains tracks by artists such as Dusky, Lane 8, Jody Wisternoff, James Grant, Beckwith, Eli & Fur, and plenty of others you may or may not have heard of. Though this is not one of our typical free downloads, I highly recommend you spend the $10.99 iTunes is asking for hours of near-perfect House music – and to support the artists who helped put it together. I have no doubt I’ll be listening to this for months to come and my guess is that if you appreciate the Deeper, more Melodic, and more chilled-out side of House music you’ll feel the same way.
Enjoy!
Anjunadeep 06 Tracklist
Disc 1
01 Croquet Club Only You Can Tell
02 John Monkman feat. Liz Cass Open Frontier
03 Cubicolor Soul Chords
04 Steve Huerta Say It Wasn’t
05 Danalog Click, Search (Jody Wisternoff Remix)
06 Vincenzo & Florian Kruse feat. Raquel Quińones If He Runs
07 Cubicolor Still Linger In My Dreams
08 Lane 8 Without You
09 Lane 8 feat. Solomon Grey Diamonds
10 16 Bit Lolitas Deep In My Soul
11 Clancy feat. Eli & Fur I Wanna Know
12 Dusky 4T4
13 Martin Roth Maya
14 Journeyman Crash Reel
15 16 Bit Lolitas Premium Emo
Disc 2
01 Aquilo Part Of Your Life (Croquet Club Remix)
02 Choir Of Young Believers Hollow Talk (Jody Wisternoff, James Grant and Lane 8 Remix)
03 Cubicolor Got This Feeling
04 Eli & Fur Feel The Fire
05 Dave Angel Quartz
06 Beckwith feat. Natalie Conway Take Me Home
07 Lancelot feat. Antony & Cleopatra Givin’ It Up (Isaac Tichauer & Nibc Remix – Jody Wisternoff & James Grant Edit)
08 HVOB Lion (Stimming Remix)
09 Shingo Nakamura vs. Jody Wisternoff & James Grant Another Tone
10 Shur-i-kan My Love
11 Ashworth Rebound
12 Meramek & Tropixx Only You
13 Jody Wisternoff Paramour
14 Leftwing & Kody Tell Me
15 Universal Solution Bandur
16 Olafur Arnalds Only The Winds (Ryan Davis’ A Letter From Far Away Variation)