Swedish duo Ari Bald and CJ Scott bring four sample-driven disco house cuts to Snatch Raw, blending dusty loops with club-focused grooves.
Snatch Raw, the more underground offshoot of Riva Starr’s Snatch! Records, welcomes Swedish producers Ari Bald and CJ Scott for “Dart 2 Da Heart”, a four-track EP that brings their sample-driven approach to disco house into sharper club territory.
With connections to Stockholm’s Studio Barnhus scene, the pair draw on the cut-and-paste traditions of disco house, working chopped samples, looping musical phrases and filtered textures into productions that favour movement and rhythmic energy over elaborate arrangements. Released on 12-inch vinyl, the EP also represents a relatively uncommon physical outing for the Snatch Raw imprint.
Opening track “Disko Monster” establishes the direction with an energetic, loop-driven workout that draws comparisons with the unmistakable sound of German producer Sound Stream. There’s a dusty, Swedish house character to the production too, with the repeated disco fragments and driving rhythm combining to create something that feels deliberately raw and functional. It’s the sort of stripped-back, sample-heavy house music that relies on the strength of its groove rather than unnecessary decoration.
“Soul Patch Seb” takes things into slightly deeper territory, introducing a jazzier musical character alongside filtered disco elements and subtle dub influences. Where the opener is concerned with immediate energy, this track appears to favour a more spacious arrangement, allowing the sampled material and rhythmic details to develop around the central groove.
The B-side introduces a noticeable change of pace with “Rotmos Latino”, pushing the tempo and intensity towards the border between disco house and techno. Heavier bass, busy percussion and a more forceful rhythmic approach give the track a tougher club identity, while retaining the sample-based foundations that run throughout the release. Of the four cuts, this looks particularly well suited to DJs working the more energetic end of underground house.
Closing track “Husky High” returns to a chunkier disco house sound, bringing diva vocal samples into a thick, bass-driven arrangement. There’s a familiar old-school quality to that combination, with the vocal fragments adding a touch of classic house character against the weight of the production.
Taken together, “Dart 2 Da Heart” offers four variations on a familiar but enduring idea: finding the right musical fragment, building a strong rhythm around it and allowing repetition, filtering and arrangement to do the rest.
It’s an approach that has served underground disco house well for decades, and Ari Bald and CJ Scott appear comfortable exploring its different possibilities, from the jazzier restraint of “Soul Patch Seb” to the more uncompromising dancefloor energy of “Rotmos Latino”.
For DJs with a taste for dusty samples, chunky drums and disco house that isn’t afraid to get a little rough around the edges, this is a release worth investigating.
Release Date: 30 September 2026, buy it here.
Label: Snatch Raw
Catalogue: SNATCHRAW020
Format: 12″ Vinyl
Genre: Disco House / Nu-Disco
Tracklisting
A1. “Disko Monster”
A2. “Soul Patch Seb”
B1. “Rotmos Latino”
B2. “Husky High”