Childhood Heroes

The first outing of Schoenbrunner Perlen in 2019 sees the return of label owner Ken Hayakawa for a six track EP. The Austrian artist invites us on an emotional journey through 80s influenced synthesizer music. On remix duties for two of the originals are fellow producers and SP residents T Raum and The Wash.

The title track “Childhood Heroes” is setting the direction and mood of the whole EP right from the first beat which provides an ever-evolving bass line combined with rich pads. Starting with the break, sparkling and steadily increasing melodic elements join the well-crafted collage. A perfect foretaste of this year’s spring festival season.

Continuing the musical journey, "Nils” gives us sweet and lightly melancholic melody which is soon joined by an intelligently modulated child choir pad and pounding percussions. Though the whole arrangement is set up very airy, the groove and energy are soon catching a sweet spot which gives us reminiscent feelings about summer, hot temperatures and Mediterranean beaches.

“Perrine” takes us into a different direction. Starting at the low end a lovely composed arpeggio and a deep sub bass are giving us the introduction into a wonderful journey of soft, melodic and colorful soundscapes. The low percussive energy levels are providing space for synths rich in variety, airy pads and catchy vocal chunks. A laid back groover for sweet and memorable summer sunsets.

Finishing the originals journey, “Alice” is beaming us directly back in time. Slowing down the tempo and with the help of old school style bass lines and synths, Ken shapes a hypnotic and slightly haunting scenery which is luring us even deeper down the rabbit hole. To be played on repeat!

For a club friendly interpretation of “Perrine”, Ken Hayakawa is joined by one of Austria’s finest Progressive exports at the moment. The Wash, who just gained the attention of the global community with remixes for Quivver and Blue Cell, transforms the laid-back original into a groovy dance floor burner with a lot of deepness. Concentrating on the key elements, he’s building a rich rhythmic collage of percussions and pads. Steadily evolving, his interpretation is a perfect and contrasty add to the EP.

Rounding things up, “Childhood Heroes” gets a treatment from T Raum. The Viennese artist is highly regarded by the global Techno community with releases on Upon You and Hush Recordz Limited. His version is targeting the audience of the big festival stages and the dark dance floors equally. The haunting soundscapes and the driving beats combined with intelligently assembled perc and hi hat patterns are leaving no doubt that this version should be played out loud!