Le retour du roi

Ever since he left Black Strobe in 2006 due to "musical differences", silence fell around Ivan Smagghe. No more epic compilations, trademark remixes, let alone productions. He did collaborate with Tim Paris on a Kill The DJ podcast in 2007 but that was all. A whole fucking year of nothing. Was Ivan hiding under a rock?

In January 2008, Smagghe returned under the pseudonym of 'Its a Fine Line' (which includes himself and Tim Paris) and remixed The Hacker's track 'Zone'. A definite comeback was approaching and in in February, Mantra Vibes presented its third edition of the Cocorico series, compilated by no other than Mr. Smagghe.


It's good to see that he hasn't lost his touch. You see, what I love about Smagghe's compilations is that he always comes up with artists - preferably from the French scene - that aren't that well-known are even completely unknown up till now , as for example Sweet Light on his Suck My Deck compilation and [T]ékel and Poni Hoax on his Fabric 23. Now, these names sound fairly familiar in the business but there once was a period when this wasn't the case. This time, he introduces Runaway, Imek and Fred Hush & Noseda to the general public. It takes heart to introduce these DJs in a compilation, something which Smagghe has never lacked.

Of course, Smagghe is bright enough to comprehend that any compilation including solely unfamiliar tracks won't create much of a stir. There's still plenty of recognisable material on Cocorico 03, such as remixes by Villalobos (!), Radio Slave and DJ Koze. On each of his compilations, the Parisian DJ takes the listener on a musical journey, alternating between visits to well-known late-night/early-morning dancefloor monuments and gems of artists yet to be discovered.

Continuez à frayer la voie aux artists inconnus, monsieur Smagghe. Le monde musical a besoin des personnes comme vous.