A seasoned producer with a wealth of experience in the electronic music environment, Micah Paul Lukasewich has always been at the vanguard of the underground dance industry with his abundant talent and cutting-edge sound design. Re-establishing his Ruhnsong imprint after a nine-year, hiatus, Micah returns to the spotlight with "The Five Winds".
Micah's star has always burned brightly in the underground dance firmament. A nascent production career in the early 2000s during progressive house's heyday, early production work saw the Canadian star featured on Chris Fortier's Fade Records, Greg Benz's Aurium and a remix of Sissy's "I See You" for the renowned Global Underground. Remixed by such iconic names as Pig and Dan, Inkfish and Trafik, while himself remixing the likes of Slacker,Shiloh, Quivver and Joel Armstrong, Micah's production talents have always been highly prized evidenced by some 70 releases between 2002 and 2010.
Throw in a tour as DJ for Global Underground, resident artist for the prestigious hybridized.org website alongside Hybrid and Way Out West, plus curator of the long-running Ruhnsong show on Proton Radio, and Micah warrants a deserved place in the progressive hall of fame.
2014 saw a cinematic magnum opus in the shape of the "Swell" album released on Nexus Soundscapes, before 2016's "Icarus" then landed on Darin Epsilon's Perspectives Digital and a pair of 2018 remixes for Lithuanian imprint, Suffused Music. Now Micah returns to his Ruhnsong imprint via "The Five Winds" EP. Championing a classic progressive house sound,
-Opener "Plasmatic" is a joy to behold with its rich melodic phrasing and rasping bass note. Elegantly crafted, musical box melodies coruscate across the mid-range in stereo-panned and counterpoint joy while a pitched vocal cut adds an ingenious touch to proceedings. Hitting its stride in the second half a pounding, emotive piece is a joy to behold.
-Opening with in rapid-fire sixteenth note bass-line, "Sunrise" is redolent in an angelic vocal from Katty Heath that whispers, "the sun will rise". Juxtaposed against a driving beat and high velocity bass, the outcome is a supreme dance-floor stormer that is certain to find favour in clubs across the globe with its clever stratification of rhythm, melody and vocal.
-"All Space and Time" is characterized by Micah's flowing ethereal soundscapes and innovative sonic architecture. A strong beat and rolling percussive groove provide an intelligent rhythmic framework while a glissando bass-line in the third movement adds depth. "
-Endline" immediately impresses with its complex polyrhythmic lines and staccato melodies. A vocal from Zoe Theodorou makes its presence felt at the mid-point adding to the emotion as the track then evolves unerringly into the third movement with a kaleidoscopic array of sumptuous production material.
-The penultimate track sees a return to the rich sci-fi soundscapes that are reminiscent of Space Manoeuvres. A cadenced bass-line in "The Descent" matches a pitched lead motif that bends eerily, while a stepped arpeggio waxes and wanes with percussive groove to provide strong dance-floor character.
-Closing out with an instrumental variation of "Endline" Micah's majestic aural artistry comes fully to the fore in a work full of craft, passion and technical ingenuity.
Arriving in a maelstrom of roaring sound design, Micah stands strong in "The Five Winds".
Text by James Warren
Micah's star has always burned brightly in the underground dance firmament. A nascent production career in the early 2000s during progressive house's heyday, early production work saw the Canadian star featured on Chris Fortier's Fade Records, Greg Benz's Aurium and a remix of Sissy's "I See You" for the renowned Global Underground. Remixed by such iconic names as Pig and Dan, Inkfish and Trafik, while himself remixing the likes of Slacker,Shiloh, Quivver and Joel Armstrong, Micah's production talents have always been highly prized evidenced by some 70 releases between 2002 and 2010.
Throw in a tour as DJ for Global Underground, resident artist for the prestigious hybridized.org website alongside Hybrid and Way Out West, plus curator of the long-running Ruhnsong show on Proton Radio, and Micah warrants a deserved place in the progressive hall of fame.
2014 saw a cinematic magnum opus in the shape of the "Swell" album released on Nexus Soundscapes, before 2016's "Icarus" then landed on Darin Epsilon's Perspectives Digital and a pair of 2018 remixes for Lithuanian imprint, Suffused Music. Now Micah returns to his Ruhnsong imprint via "The Five Winds" EP. Championing a classic progressive house sound,
-Opener "Plasmatic" is a joy to behold with its rich melodic phrasing and rasping bass note. Elegantly crafted, musical box melodies coruscate across the mid-range in stereo-panned and counterpoint joy while a pitched vocal cut adds an ingenious touch to proceedings. Hitting its stride in the second half a pounding, emotive piece is a joy to behold.
-Opening with in rapid-fire sixteenth note bass-line, "Sunrise" is redolent in an angelic vocal from Katty Heath that whispers, "the sun will rise". Juxtaposed against a driving beat and high velocity bass, the outcome is a supreme dance-floor stormer that is certain to find favour in clubs across the globe with its clever stratification of rhythm, melody and vocal.
-"All Space and Time" is characterized by Micah's flowing ethereal soundscapes and innovative sonic architecture. A strong beat and rolling percussive groove provide an intelligent rhythmic framework while a glissando bass-line in the third movement adds depth. "
-Endline" immediately impresses with its complex polyrhythmic lines and staccato melodies. A vocal from Zoe Theodorou makes its presence felt at the mid-point adding to the emotion as the track then evolves unerringly into the third movement with a kaleidoscopic array of sumptuous production material.
-The penultimate track sees a return to the rich sci-fi soundscapes that are reminiscent of Space Manoeuvres. A cadenced bass-line in "The Descent" matches a pitched lead motif that bends eerily, while a stepped arpeggio waxes and wanes with percussive groove to provide strong dance-floor character.
-Closing out with an instrumental variation of "Endline" Micah's majestic aural artistry comes fully to the fore in a work full of craft, passion and technical ingenuity.
Arriving in a maelstrom of roaring sound design, Micah stands strong in "The Five Winds".
Text by James Warren
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