East Londoner Max Sinàl kicked off his career on pirate radio 25 years ago and has manned the ones and twos at venues including Fabric, Koko, Space Ibiza, and Potato Head Bali, as well as festivals such as Glastonbury, We Out Here, Bestival, and Secret Garden Party, in recent years.
One half of the duo 2fox, who have been remixed by the likes of Louie Vega, Soul Clap and Tommy Musto, the Soul Quest Records co-founder was named as one of DJ Mag‘s Best Emerging Artists in 2023, with his tracks gaining support from the likes of Gilles Peterson, Laurent Garnier, Kai Alce, Aroop Roy and many more.
For this week’s #MyRecordBag, Max Sinàl serves up his top Detroit deep house vinyl selections. Over to you, Max!
Theo Parrish – Overyohead
“Originally dropping in 1999 on Theo’s brilliant Sound Signature imprint, this is pure Detroit: deep, raw, melodic and slightly rough round the edges. I love the progression of it and all the peaks and troughs.”
Kenny Dixon Jr. – Winter Breeze
“Moodymann under his government name doing what he does best. All four tracks on this EP are incredible but this is my standout. Low-slung deep house groove with a vocal you can’t get enough of.”
Marcellus Pittman – I’m Gonna Be The Everything (A Band Of Brothers Remix)
“This one’s a new addition to my crates. Released this year as a Japanese Import Edition on Adeen Records, Marcellus Pittman gets remixed by the label’s in-house live jazz ensemble A Band Of Brothers. I love the contrast of the heavy drums mixed with the beautiful vibraphone and sax melodies.”
Quentin Harris ft. Cordell McClary – Travelling (Vocal Mix)
“More on the soulful end of the spectrum, this one has been a mainstay in my record bag for over 15 years now. Detroit-born but New York-based Quentin Harris enlists the silky vocals of Cordell McClary for a timeless classic and some of the most easily recognised percussion patterns in house music. I will never get bored of playing this one.”
Andrés – Drama Around The Corner
“The first release on his own label La Vida, this is a beaut of an EP all round. New For You is also a favourite of mine. Drama Around The Corner just has something about it. The stripped-back half-time groove, that vocal sample, the horns. It’s laid-back but still has a bit of grunt to it. Beauty.”
Moodymann – Sunday Morning
“KDJ once again but this time under his Moodymann moniker. This is as close to perfection as it gets for me. That double bass walking bass line keeps it driving while the sax goes off on tangents, all the while those ambient sounds drift in and out and the sparse vocals are woven in perfectly. It’s all just perfection to me. Originally released in 1997, this one is never getting old.”
Omar S – Set It Out
“With the acapella lifted from Midway’s 1984 Set It Out, Omar S proves that less is more. He also proves that he’s a bit of a rascal for THAT rogue clap, haha.”
Waajeed – Keep It Coming
“Taken from his 2022 album Memoirs of Hi-Tech Jazz, Waajeed flexes his genius production and musicality, incorporating a bumpy broken beat groove and a crazy bass line with all those other lovely synth and horn lines.”
Theo Parrish – Falling Up (Original Mix)
“To be honest, I could have easily done this whole feature on Theo Parrish/Sound Signature. He has such a ridiculous back catalogue and is one of my favourite producers (and DJs). Have gone for this one, as one of my highlights of the summer was seeing Benji B play the Carl Craig Mix at Icon at Glastonbury this summer. The O.G. mix tips it for me though. Beauty.”
Rick Wilhite – Saldubsa Tribute U2
“Ending on a jazzy one from Detroit legend and Three Chairs member Rick Wilhite. I’m obsessed with the piano top line and that percussion loop. Lovely Brazilian vibes on this.”
Thanks to Max Sinàl for his selections. Keep up to date with all his latest releases and tour dates here.