Playlist of the Week: Dennis Cruz
Spain's veteran underground house music principal, Dennis Cruz, celebrates his recent return to his MÜSE imprint by firing over some of the most unshakeable summer dance floor gems in his arsenal for Beatport's Playlist of the Week.
Hello everyone, Dennis Cruz here! It’s a pleasure to be asked to curate Beatport’s Playlist Of The Week following my return to MÜSE, the label I set up with my brother Eddy M. It’s the first time I’ve released new music on the label since last summer, and being back alongside Eddy for this release feels like a nice little celebration!
This playlist features a selection of records I’ve been playing out a lot this summer. I wanted to showcase the records that have been making their way into my peak time sets, as well as a few tracks that work great from warm-up through to closing and even the afters. Naturally, when summer comes around, my second home becomes DC10 in Ibiza for Solid Grooves’ Casino Motel residency, and it’s an honour to be able to play so regularly at such an iconic venue. Each of these tracks has worked the dance floor on the famous terrace, but also at a long list of venues and provided some great moments, whether they are old, new, or soon to be released. There are a few of my productions in there, including the return to MÜSE, my latest Solid Grooves single and a forthcoming remix on Crosstown Rebels. There’s also music from artists such as DJ Honesty and Delano Smith through to Manu Desrets, Eddy’s new track on MÜSE, and a final fun curveball selection, too!
Check out Dennis Cruz's 'Playlist of the Week' on Beatport.
Dennis Cruz - Going Down [MÜSE]
The first selection in this playlist is my new track, "Going Down." I had to include it, so why not get it out of the way first! It’s been a record that’s been working really well in my sets over the past few months, and it’s a track that I had been tweaking and finishing up on while on the road. It’s groovy, funky, and it brings a really fun vibe to the dance floor whenever it’s played. I hope everyone enjoys!
African Children’s Choir, Francis Mercier, Faul & Wad - Sauti [Insomniac]
I really love this record. It’s one of those tracks that always brings happy feelings and emotions to the dance floor and leaves everybody smiling. A perfect example would be when I played it at No Art festival recently before handing over to Black Coffee. If you’ve seen any videos of the stage and the crowd you can see the happiness and energy flowing out of everyone. It can provide a real highlight moment.
Eddy M - Don’t Play [MÜSE]
This is Eddy’s latest track, and it makes up the other half of our split EP on our label MÜSE. It has that signature Eddy M groove and sound but brings something fresh, and it’s a great example of what the label is about and how our two styles complement one another. It’s punchy, driving, and delivers a heavy bassline - everything you need for an impactful peak-time selection.
Holchin - Focus [Cadenza]
Another record that is perfect for the club, but in its own way. It was recently released on Luciano’s legendary Cadenza imprint, a label I have played record after record from over the years. It’s dubby and moody, combining hard-hitting percussion and heavy kicks and is a track that really works well when you have the dancefloor moving and engaged. You can really use it to turn the temperature up.
Sante Sansone - On The Ground [Sound D’Elite]
Another new release, this record just dropped on Ilario Alicante’s label Sound D’Elite. Sante released on MÜSE to open our 2024 schedule at the start of the year, and his productions are always in rotation in my sets. If you’re after hard-hitting tracks that are still full of groove, then he’s always an artist who delivers!
Tommy Vicari Jnr, 76-79 - 57 HERTZ (DJ Honesty Remix) [Cabinet Records]
A modern-day classic, with DJ Honesty delivering a remix of an already great house track. Again, it’s a record that brings that solid, no-nonsense groove but has lighter elements that make it perfect for the summer and throughout the festival season.
Dennis Cruz - Bonito [Solid Grooves]
My second pick when it comes to my own music is "Bonito," which was released on Solid Grooves during Miami Music Week. It has been and will continue to feature as a key part of my sets across the whole summer. It’s a track stacked with Latin flavours, influences, and roots, and it has been soundtracking the Solid Grooves Casino Motel at DC10 all season.
John Jastszebski - Tea Break (Delano Smith Remix) [Bass Culture]
Delano Smith is one of the greats and a true house music pioneer, and this track is a perfect example of why. This remix was released back in 2016 on D’Julz’s label, Bass Culture. It is deep and has those magical keys and rolling drums that keep you locked. I love to play this as a closing track or once we make it to the after party!
Manu Desrets - Tributo [MÜSE]
Manu is an extremely talented producer from Argentina, and we were lucky enough to be able to release this track on MÜSE back at the end of June. It’s packed full of energy, but it’s a track that almost seems to gain more and more drive as it builds and plays through. Especially after the second drop! Every single time I play this record, the crowd always goes crazy with their hands up.
Meera - Sykkelkurv (Dennis Cruz Remix) [Crosstown Rebels]
I had so much fun working on this remix. It’s always a pleasure to release on Crosstown Rebels, the home of my debut album ‘Roots’, and being asked by Damian to remix an exciting, up-and-coming artist like Meera, who he has so much belief in, makes this one special. I went a little bit crazy with some of the elements before aiming to bring the energy down during the breakdown to reach almost a state of meditation. However, expect the energy once the track builds and comes back in again!
Room 5 - Make Luv (feat. Oliver Cheatham) [Noisetraxx]
The bonus curveball! To close out the playlist selections, I’m going with one of my favourite tracks to close out a party. Everyone will know it, and they have probably heard it a hundred times in all kinds of situations, locations, and settings - while they’ve been in the car, while they’re at home... But when it’s played as the final track of the night, it becomes a truly special record and has provided so many memories.
