Mark Kinchen is one of the original architects of deep house. Raised in Detroit, where he learned his way around the studio under the tutelage of Kevin Saunderson, he eventually made his way to New York and cemented his reputation as one of the industry’s top remixers in the 1990s, applying his skeletal, percussive touch and trademark organ bass line to the B-52s, Tom Tom Club, Pet Shop Boys, Tori Amos, Bette Middler, Blondie, and dozens of other pop and R&B acts as well as club cuts from Moby, Masters at Work, and Chez Damier. Kinchen’s visibility had receded in recent years, but the revival of interest in classic house (and also U.K. garage, which Kinchen’s skippy style deeply influenced) has introduced a new generation of listeners to his soulful sound: Call it MK MkII.
Defected honored him last year with Defected Presents House Masters: MK, which collected classic MK originals like “Burning” along with reworks of Byron Stingily, Masters at Work, and Chez Damier; this year, the Dutch techno label Delsin reissued his “MKappella,” and new MK remixes have graced releases from Lana Del Rey, Morgan Geist’s Storm Queen, and Crosstown Rebels’ Amirali. He even turned up remixing witch house’s CREEP on “You,” with vocals from Nina Sky further adding to the electronic culture clash.
With Kinchen’s influence so central to this year’s deep-house revival, it’s not surprising to learn that he’s currently collaborating with Lee Foss, Jamie Jones, and Maceo Plex, artists deeply indebted to MK’s bumping, sighing sound. Next up from the veteran remixer is a rework of Todd Terry’s classic “Samba,” originally released under Terry’s House of Gypsies alias in 1992. The package brings together O.G. house-heads like Kenny Dope and Louie Vega with new jacks like Stefano Noferini; it comes out July 23 on Terry’s InHouse Records. Check out an exclusive stream of “Samba (MK Remix)” here.
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