Marcos Baiano is back. The house producer, who ran the Berlin label B.SOUL Limited before stepping away from the underground scene, has launched a new imprint, 2HOT2HANDLE, with the Back To The Future EP, released on October 16. It is his first release after a break of nearly eight years.
The four tracks are “Intruders”, a Terence :Terry: remix of “Intruders”, “Back To The Future” and “Body Heat”. EVL Magazine describes the record as built largely on analogue hardware, with the Moog Sub Phatty supplying grit and the Subsequent 37 rounder tones, and notes that “Body Heat” carries Baiano’s own vocals, which he plans to make a feature of future releases. Baiano calls his musical language “electro-black-soul”.
Why he stopped
In an interview with Magnetic Magazine, Baiano says he spent almost four years in Berlin, deeply involved in the underground until 2017, producing, DJing and running showcases for his old label. He became, in his words, “very absorbed by competition and the weight of outside judgement,” and for most of the break barely opened music software.
Early in his career, he tells Magnetic, two of his house and tech-house releases reached the Beatport Top 3 in a row, but he felt that kind of success did not represent him. He studied saxophone as a child and cites Black music from Muddy Waters to Etta James as a lasting influence.
Coming back, he found a scene that moves much faster. “Everything moves incredibly fast now, and sometimes I feel we are losing the context, curiosity, and depth that have always made underground music special,” he told Magnetic. He describes 2HOT2HANDLE as a response to that: “a small window inside a very fast world — a place to slow down, listen and experience things with a little more depth.” He says the project will extend beyond music to lifestyle and clothing, under the motto “Guided By Frequency”.
The label’s foundations
B.SOUL Limited released music by Jovonn, Terence Terry and Ivan Iacobucci (as Retro Activity), according to EVL, and Baiano has also released on Nervous, Lapsus and La Vie En Rose. Terence :Terry:, the Paris-raised DJ and producer who remixes the lead track, will act as a mentor to the new label and handle its mastering, EVL reports.
The return also fits a wider moment. In the same week, Riordan launched REMAPPED and Sara Landry released an album on her own HEKATE label: artists building their own platforms rather than waiting for someone else’s. Baiano’s version is smaller and slower by design.
Back To The Future is out now on 2HOT2HANDLE.
