Chicago House Music Festival 2026

Deep House

Deep House is a subgenre of House Music. Originating in the 1980s – particularly with the music of Larry Heard, Fingers Inc, and others – it fuses elements of Chicago House with a more melodic, sometimes soulful feeling.

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Borrowed Identity: Sexo Bonito (Quintessentials)

I'm not saying this guy has a cult but if he did, I'd probably tip the Kool Aid. I've yet to hear a bad record from Borrowed Identity and that's a fairly common opinion....
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SLOUSE: Fishing In Slower Territories from Compost Records

If you (like so many British music journalists and tastemakers) lie awake at night worried that there just aren't enough dance music sub-genres ("Night Bus" or "UK Bass" anyone? No, I thought not.), your...

Gareth Whitehead, Marshall Jefferson and Robert Owens: How Can I

For me, it's a rarity to come across a dance music single where the original mix actually outshines the remixes! But, when you've got Marshall Jefferson on production and Robert Owens on vocals, what...

In Residence with Housepitality, San Francisco

The poet Allen Ginsberg called them the "classic stations of the earth" - the points on a map where people seemed to gather, quite spontaneously, to celebrate life and create a scene. We're calling...
Pittsburgh Track Authority

Pittsburgh Track Authority: The 5 Magazine Interview

Meet Preslav Lefterov, Thomas Cox and Adam Ratana, collectively Pittsburgh Track Authority. And remember their names, because these three guys from Pittsburgh will restore your faith in the American dance music scene.   So how did...
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Mr. Raoul K’s Stunning LP Still Living In Slavery

There was no album I've looked forward to more than Mr. Raoul K's Still Living in Slavery; I was not disappointed. Mr. K has his eye fixed on a point so far on the...
karizmavideo

Karizma’s Beats & Bobs Vol 1

In a post-apocalyptic world where the fallout from the EDM Bomb has caused our musical landscape to resemble the set of a Mad Max movie, I imagine Karizma to be the supercool guy who...
Kool Vibe

Kool Vibe: A 5 Mag Mix vol 1

French Deep House producer, DJ and owner of KV Records Kool Vibe mixes the first episode of a new flagship mix & interview series from 5 Magazine. 5 Magazine is pleased to share with you...
Franck Roger Home Invasion

Franck Roger’s Home Invasion #4

It was just about a year ago that Franck Roger dismantled (or at least mothballed) his label Real Tone at its peak. Real Tone broke a number of artists internationally (Maya Jane Coles, whose...
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Forever Monna – Again and Again and Again

Are you going to remember this in six months? That’s a new litmus test I’m trying out with new music. It’s limited and a bit pretentious - not everything good is meant to stand the...
Four Play Sessions vol 19

Four Play Sessions: Andrew Emil and Jordan Fields Live at SmartBar

Four Play Sessions is a mix series from Chicago's Four Play Music and featuring the talents of Mr. Andrew Emil & Friends, published each month exclusively for 5 Magazine. The last Four Play set was...

The Chilean-Midwest Deep House Connection: Rick Wade, K Alexi and Jorge C. on the Combo EP

I know very little about the underground scene in Santiago de Chile where Ojodeapolo records originates - just what some DJ friends say when they pass through, and they don't pass through all that...
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Marc Cotterell and Karl The Voice Team Up on The Land

I'm pretty convinced that this release from Marc Cotterell and Karl The Voice was made STRICTLY for the dance floors around the world, for the drum track is definitely the heart & soul foundation...
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Ortella: Mad In Lyon EP (Rutilance)

The vinyl industry is still in a state of rehab after a debilitating stroke dropped it to the floor. After years of re-learning how to hold a fork and use the stairs without grasping...
Detroit Swindlevideo

Detroit Swindle: 64 Ways Remixes from Dirt Crew

I told you to wait for the remixes didn't I? Dirt Crew really took the perfect amount of time to let Boxed Out simmer. Since my last review, my friends and I have all...
JT Donaldson

JT Donaldson’s 7 Inch Adventures

The restless adventurer has found a new calling. One-time Chicago resident JT Donaldson played twice in as many months in the city this summer, with something new in his bag. Or sort of new. They're...
Alinka

Alinka Says You’re Basic

There are at least a few people in this thing determined to Keep House Music Weird. Chicago's Alinka is one of them. She debuts an EP for Get Up that is destined to become...
David Marston Jamaicaliavideo

David Marston Makes Beautiful Music on Jamaicalia from Soul Clap

This took me four or five spins to get it. I'm not sure why. But in the end, I didn't just figure it out, but came to realize that I like every track on...
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Alex Agore’s I Got Rhythm EP (KV Records)

I feel like you can take anything I've ever written about any Alex Agore record and apply it to any other. That's not to say they're interchangeable. It's because of a level of quality...
DJ Gene Huntvideo

Gene Hunt is Living In A Room (Hardmoon London)

Out of all of the old school producers who still have a credible current body of work, nobody can surprise you like Gene Hunt. You think he's fallen into a groove but he'll bounce...

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