Galcher Lustwerk - 100% Galcher (Milky Gray Vinyl) Vinyl 2LP

100% GALCHER was a game-changer when it landed in 2013: an hour of original music from a relatively unknown producer, introduced through the beloved mix series Blowing Up The Workshop. Galcher Lustwerk’s signature sound—a smoky, stream-of-consciousness baritone shadow-boxing with beats, informed by funk, rap, rhythm, and blues—felt like an epiphany: hypnotic, complete, and impossibly compelling. Resident Advisor called it “a louche, lysergic and resolutely black take on deep house,” while Pitchfork noted, “It’s the sort of gem you felt inclined to pass around.” By year-end lists, the acclaim only grew: RA and Juno named it mix of the year, FACT Magazine placed it in the top ten, and Philip Sherburne included it in his Spin rundown. Select tracks have seen small-run pressings, but the album primarily circulated on SoundCloud and YouTube, where it became a low-key cult classic—a gateway into Lustwerk’s now-established catalog, known for its late-night reliability and forward-thinking vision. In 2022, marking ten years since the original recordings, Lustwerk returned to Ghostly International to release a remastered, limited-edition double LP.

A product of the Midwest, Lustwerk grew up in Cleveland, taping over his parents’ cassettes and spending hours at the family computer recording loops and designing jewel-case artwork for burned CDs. In high school, he turned to Ableton Live and devoured every electronic music magazine he could find. Reflecting in the 100% GALCHER liner notes, he recalls trips to Bent Crayon, a local shop where he purchased whatever blogs or clerks recommended, CDs sealed, vinyl stacked high, too shy to listen before buying.

At RISD, Lustwerk played in noise bands, plugged into Providence’s DIY scene via Myspace, and DJed weeknights at downtown bars, connecting with Young Male and DJ Richard, who would later found White Material Records. By 2012, he had moved to New York City, working in graphic design but increasingly disillusioned with office life. Nights were spent carving out his own spaces—parties in basements, office buildings, and offbeat karaoke bars—drawing inspiration from events like Mr. Sunday Night in Gowanus and The Bunker at Public Assembly.

This lifestyle informed Lustwerk’s musical vision. He remembers a night in Providence with Morgan Louis and Alvin Aronson as a turning point, after which he built a bedroom setup with a Dave Smith Tempest drum machine, Waldorf Blofeld synthesizer, and TEAC cassette recorder. Early sessions were loose: “I wanted to feel like you were tripping, maybe having a bit of heatstroke, or dehydration. Your body feels detached, your jaw clenched. People become furniture. Light becomes the main character, surfaces show their age in real-time. Wabi-sabi shit.”

Early snippets went straight to SoundCloud, where immediate feedback shaped the tracks. A DM from Matthew Kent led to an invitation to his Blowing Up The Workshop mix series: “In his straightforwardness and my willingness at the time to take the opportunity, I decided to go for broke and finish a lil mix, sort of like a rap mixtape you’d find off Datpiff.com.”

100% GALCHER spread quickly, though much of the original masters were lost to water damage. Until now, Lustwerk revived the tracks and sent them to Josh Bonati for remastering. “The original mix was never mastered, so I hope older fans can find something new here.” Hearing the enhanced set in tracklist order reveals it was always a proper album: sly synth interludes (“Stem”) clear space for raspy house anthems like “Fifty” and “Parlay,” the set’s breakout track. Themes that would recur across Lustwerk’s catalog—Midwest driving meditations and solitary nightlife comedowns—first crystallize here. Lustwerk’s elusive DJ persona is embodied in hooks like the one-line refrain from “Put On”: “One minute I’m on / next minute I’m gone.” Narcotic phrases like this linger—just look at the enduring YouTube popularity of “Kaint.”

Though recorded alone, 100% GALCHER remains a collective experience. Reflecting a decade later, Lustwerk notes: “Making music can be alienating, especially for DJs who travel a lot; it’s isolating. It’s easy to express loneliness in music, but when it comes to getting things done, putting music out, you should go on that journey with other people—friends or maybe just a group online—so they can help you build, and you can build together.”