Luciano’s new label Cadenza Lab

Luciano’s new label Cadenza Lab

16 April, 2010 | 8.31AM

• Written by: Zack Rico
• Filed under: Music News: cadenza, cadenza lab, luciano

Luciano’s high profile Cadenza label has always served the needs of vinyl purists ahead of digital DJs, with releases often coming out on wax months ahead of digital.

But with the launch of Luciano’s new digital only imprint, Cadenza Lab, it is digital DJs who will get their hands on the producer’s work, and the work of Cadenza artists such as Reboot, Ricardo Villalobs, Thomas Melchior, and Loco Dice, before anyone else. 

Cadenza Lab launched this week with its first release ‘10diez10’ coming from the Chilean DJ himself. The double A-side features two lengthy and uncompromising DJ tools which suggests
Cadenza Lab could be just as creative and experimental as its parent label was in its earliest days.

Perhaps even more so. Cadenza Lab, as the name might suggest, could be a imprint that allows the Cadenza-affiliated artists to explore their more, mad scientist sounds, that might not otherwise have been financially viable as a full physical release. One can only hope.

The mammoth 19 minutes on ‘La Nuve’ certainly fits that model. With waves of warped percussion and wonky synthesizer lines creating dancefloor tension and subtle drama, there is a feeling of a producer running wild with his thoughts, unbounded by the needs to fit into the carnival house conformity of Cadenza which has proven so popular.

The racy Eastern/Mediterranean guitars on ‘Amael Drama’ fit closer to Luciano’s brand of big tech house, but the monotony of the rolling groove strips back the usual euphoria to something much more refined and symbollic.

When the gentle atmospheric guitar eventually worms its way into the mix after five and a half minutes, it feels like a beautiful sunset on an otherwise grey, machine filled horizon.

Human whispers and waves of melody give the song an almost zen-like feel.How so? Well the aim of zen, which is a school of buddhism, is to achieve sudden enlightenment, known as satori, through meditation or zazen. Usually under the guidance of a spiritual person, in this case the producer, paradoxical statements - coans - are used to transcend rational thought.

One needs only listen to the juxtaposition of the free and wandering guitar against the repetitive structured beats that hold it up, to feel the sense of spirituality Luciano hoped to inject into the song.

It’s almost as if he wanted to send a message with this first Cadenza Lab release. Yes this is digital, but the spirit of humanity can still be felt in a copy made up of 1s and 0s. Or maybe, I’m reading too much into it.

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• Get Luciano '10diez10' on Beatport