Rogerio Martins – Otherwise Unknown

Piston Recordings was launched in 2007 by Rogério Martins to fill the void in Portugal’s independent dance music label market. It is dedicated to young and fresh new talent and now the boss himself steps up with three great originals and a killer Kris Wadsworth remix.

Martins released his first record more than a decade ago now, and since then he has released on Eyepatch Recordings, Jackmoves, Troia Recordings and Azuli as well as putting out plenty of great originals and remixes on his own Piston Recordings. In 2014 his hit single ‘Gonna Be Mine’ received critical acclaim, being supported by artists like Dan Ghenacia, CRock and many more, and since then his DJ profile around the world has continued to grow.

Up first on this altest release is ‘Otherwise Unknown’, a bumping house cut with fat drums, old school pads and a sweaty sense of groove. ‘We Like To Party’ is another firing dance floor filler with tooting New York chords, slinky percussive grooves and vibes aplenty.

The last original is ‘1994’, and the title tells you what you need to know – this is a full fat, booty shaking house with vocal stabs, a rolling bassline and shades of Kerri Chandler all bottled up in the atmospheric arrangement.

On the remix of ‘Otherwise Unknown’ is American bad boy Kris Wadsworth, who has released EPs and LPs on Get Physical and Hypercolour and has a really unique sense of style. His version is solid and firmly rooted to monstrous kicks, with little trumpet sounds and dark vocals all adding to the intensity.

This is another fine release that spreads the sonic remit of Martins and his Piston label even further than before.