by Rob Theakston
If imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, the fellows in Berlins Rhythm & Sound camp will have no problem endorsing Detroit-based Deepchord as their dub-techno heir apparent. Already an established ambient producer, Rod Modell partnered with Mike Schommer, quietly releasing their first 12 together in the late 90s. Like Rhythm & Sound, Deepchord based their compositions around minimal arrangements: repetitive rhythms inspired by dub, faint traces of white noise, and warm synth stabs. The group retained a loyal cult following, releasing several more singles in the early 2000s as well as a limited-run CD version of their first six releases (originally pressed up in extremely limited quantities). The duos production went from prolific to a screeching halt around 2002, making a remarkable and rare live performance at the Detroit Electronic Music Festival and releasing singles in a scarce fashion (the groups 2006 single was only pressed to 100 copies). A retrospective of the groups work, Vibrasound: 1999-2004, was issued under Modells name and released on the Silentes label in 2005. Later that year, Modell teamed with Kevin Hanton to release Illuminati Audio Science and used a generous portion of the groups output, looped and sliced into small segments (much like Richie Hawtins DE9 experiments), for a continuous 70-minute mix CD.