Jorge Caiado is one of the most vital and recognisable figures on the Lisbon music scene. Proprietor of dance music record shop Carpet & Snares, alongside a number of associated labels, Caiado is perhaps best known for his huge knowledge of house history. Following the release of his full-length album ‘Time and Space’ in 2019, Caiado presents a no less deep but altogether different trip into techno and IDM, returning for the second time to his ‘Conversion’ alias.
Analogue intent is at the heart of the studio operations of Conversion, as indicated by the track titles; 2.1, 2.2, 2.3… The EP opens with gentle birdsong, soon mutating into luminescent, liquid funk, growing in intensity but still very much grounded on earth. Conversion 02 then heads off in a number of cosmic directions. 2.2 wraps Detroit-friendly analogue noise around a barrelling kick, whereas 2.3 oozes pure interstellar romance from the softer, assured edges of Caiado’s optimistic style and signature sound.
Dancefloor potential increases significantly on 2.4, a big-room friendly centrepiece built around urgent, bleeping basslines and billowing passages of soft, ethereal synths. Concluding with 2.5, the Conversion project reaches the outer-limits of it’s palette, awash in submerged chords and notes of melancholy acid, each interlocked with a powerful rhythm structure.
Deep, wide-eyed and undeniable, Conversion continues to demonstrate Caiado’s stellar versatility as a DJ and producer with rare nous in respecting and evolving some of dance music’s most enduring sounds.
@jorgecaiado
Buy:
https://carpetandsnaresrecords.bandcamp.com/album/2-ep-conversion02
