Some of the finest house music in the world right now is coming out of the Canadian Riviera. Vancouver’s music scene is thriving with independent labels and record stores right now, an underground hotspot for collaboration and creativity. Adding a splash of coastal spirit to vintage house grooves, Jack J and his Mood Hut crew are leading the Glass City’s fresh wave of dance music. Slowly expanding out of an era of cassette releases and into critical acclaim, Mood Hut – alongside a stable of local affiliates – is a collective you’ll want to be keeping up with.
One of the highlights of the Vancouver scene is Libra Mix, a site that hosts a number of mixes from the city’s top artists, including extensive appearances from the Mood Hut team spanning back to 2012. Updated fairly often, their sprawling archive has been the soundtrack to my spring, and it’s been a fantastic way to get acquainted with the best the Riviera has to offer.
To familiarize you with the music of Mood Hut, I'd like to run down a few of their finest contributions to Libra Mix. After the break, check out five of my favorite selections from their archives – right-click and "save as" on any image to download each mix, or stick around and stream them on the blog.
LM026: 2ibra – Mood Hut Mix 4
Let's begin our Mood Hut Mix retrospective with the under appreciated Mix 004: this one was recorded “In Hut” by 2ibra, aka Musique Librique, some time in 2012. Highlights include: Hardaway's lost gem “Limekind” at 16:40, Jack J's emotional “Girlfriend” at 35:12 and No Gold's untitled stomper at 42:46. Archival. 47:14
There’s not much online in regard to the early entries in the MH series, but "4: Warm-Ups and Isolations" is still around to serve as the perfect introduction to many of Mood Hut’s artists. Packed with 15 definitive deep cuts, 2ibra brings the label’s new-age, lo-fi house hits to you with “maximum respect 2 the freaks.” The tracklist is embedded in the image, with a few highlights picked out in the Libra Mix description. In particular, Jack J’s spacey, soothing “Girlfriend” is one song you won’t want to miss.
Local Artist – Mood Hut Mix 10
Here is a very special one for you! 100% unreleased Mood Hut material collected and selected by Local Artist from Vancouver. Lots of exciting and forthcoming music can be heard in this mix so right click and save as. 1:01:00
Jumping from "4" to "10" catches us up to present-day Mood Hut, on which Vancouver producer Local Artist has assembled a stellar tracklist showcasing more of the label’s outstanding offerings. From the bouncy, lush arrangement on Jack J’s “Atmosphere” all the way through to the final “Disco Mantra,” Local Artist’s silky transitions guide you through an hour of unrivaled selections. This is my personal favorite in the list, which is a great sign considering the mix features nothing but as-of-yet unreleased tracks.
LM031: Pender Street Steppers – Scorpio Mix
The Pender Street Steppers take us for a night time drift thru the City of Glass. Strap in. 1:47:50
Pender Street Steppers is Mood Hut’s dynamic duo, a consistent source of riveting mixes and danceable singles. On “Scorpio Mix,” the Steppers pack nearly two hours of smoky, exotic tracks into a dense transmission beamed in from Canada’s West Coast. Sun-kissed melodies flirt with ice-cold funk rhythms in a must-hear contribution to Libra Mix.
LM006: Jack J – Morning Prayer
You gotta take a listen to this one! For bright mornings and warm evenings, deep blue to bright tangerine. 1:00:48
One half of Pender Street Steppers and one of Vancouver’s brightest rising stars, Jack J brings you an hour of smooth jazz and positive energy in this set for sunrise. If you’re looking for more calming, coastal selections to start off your day, make sure you check out "Morning Prayer Part II" as well, which guest-stars Libra Mix regular and PSS’ other half Liam Butler. Also worth mentioning is Jack J’s phenomenal 12” single from last year, Looking Forward To You, which features three hip, disco-inspired house tracks.
LM035: Dee-J Phe – Mood Hut Mix 9
To end the year 2013 we are extremely proud and honoured to host parts one AND two of Mood Hut Mix #9 mixed "in Hut" by Dee-j Phe. You can't hear this anywhere else and as far as we are concerned, it doesn't get any hotter than this. This is 100% unreleased material from the Mood Hut. As usual, you can right click and "save as" on this mix and any mix on this page - for free! For tracklist call 1800 - DeeJPhe. Not sure if that number works but try it! 53:13
Wrapping up the list is one of the few mixes standing in the MH series. This set comes to us courtesy of Dee-J Phe; as far as I can tell, there’s only one part, but there are still 53 rock-solid minutes for you to enjoy. Featuring now-released knockouts, the mix covers everything Mood Hut has to offer, from drowsy deep-house cuts to Pacific-flavored funk hits. I gave the number a call but there was no tracklist to be found on the other end, just a prerecorded voice looking for intriguing guys. So, unless that’s your thing, you’ll just have to take this great mix at face value.
That’s more than enough Mood Hut to last you a while, but remember to bookmark Libra Mix and dive into their archives when you’re ready for more.
