An Odyssey

Released

It was a long journey for Chicago-born Detroit-raised DJ producer Delano Smith, from the beginnings of his music career in the late 70s DJing with Detroit house Godfather Ken Collier, to the 2012 release of his debut album. An Odyssey is almost all 4/4 dance floor tracks, based on heavyweight but precise drum tracks that manage to sound both crispy and raw, and smooth and slick at the same time. Smith’s version of house music is very Detroit with techno futurism running through it, the relentless 4/4 kick drum pulse pretty much the only vestige of the disco music it evolved from. The grooves feel machine-tooled, cool and collected, interlocking perfectly with the subtle bass tones, interstellar synth chords and metallic-sounding synth leads that make up his sound. Quietly confident, groove-factor-10 deep house.

Harold Heath