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A collection of Terre Thaemlitzâs gorgeous and thought-provoking deep-house 12 s turns a critical eye on history, identity, and club culture.
By 2008, when Terre Thaemlitz unveiled her deep-house masterpiece
Midtown 120 Blues, heâd been hired and fired as a DJ in some of NYCâs most infamous and beloved trans bars; sold out venues around the world while first relocating to Oakland and then Japan; and released a string of experimental recordings on heady labels like Mille Plateaux. (Thaemlitz, who identifies as transgender and subscribes to a ânon-essentialistâ notion of gender identity, uses alternating pronouns.)
Midtown 120 Blues, released under Thaemlitzâs DJ Sprinkles alias, was a culmination of all that, a collection of 12 s and associated tracks all bursting with bright ideas. Some were textural: âHouse Music Is Controllable Desire You Can Ownâ burned off a murky, funky throb with breaks as rosy as the morning sun. O