Who is Waldemar Schwartz?

Last week in San Francisco I came across this funny looking new 12″ with art that looked like it was by Philly/NY graffiti legend ESPO Steve Powers.

Upon closer inspection it turned out to be a brand new release on the always flawless Golf Channel label.

Waldemar Schwartz in balloony/sausage letters and 2 wonky track names “La Taza de Oro” and “Krav Maga Girls” with a couple of flying molars promised cool weirdness, if nothing else.

(*Earlier while shopping I’d snagged a slightly distressed copy of Chipmunk Punk-covers of “punk” songs by Alvin, Simon & Theodore, so I was feeling even more adventurous than usual.)

When I lay the needle on the record in studio a little after 1am however…it wasn’t just weird, it was a gloriously chuggy disco groover.

Like some lost, dusty Gamble & Huff production, “La Taza de Oro” is soulful and funky as all get out but with a super wobbly bassline and space-disco angle that sets it apart.

A little research revealed Waldemar Schwartz to be an alias for Swedish disco dude Mans Swanberg (who also releases spectacular work under the name Bogdan Irkuk a.k.a. BULGARI.) Additionally, Swanberg painted the deliciously weird cover for the record. It’s a lot of aliases and a lot of mystery, but with this excellent conflagration of styles and undeniable vibes, it’s all that much more fun for it.