The Weekly Froth! - 20160513

The Weekly Froth! A weekly take on six tracks, most of which have recently popped up somewhere in the blogosphere. Bit of a mixed bag with a slight leaning towards house, disco, and remixes, but generally just anything that for some reason tickled the writer’s fancy.

Track of the Week: ‘Cloud 9' by Kasper Bjorke

From the get go, there is this warmth in the synths that reminds me of why I love Kasper Bjorke so. At 49 seconds, another reminder, adding again to the whole atmosphere, diving into a sort of beautiful melancholia strengthened by the slower, deeper sounds he uses. Just before the two minute mark he adds a bit of extra percussion for rhythm purposes, and a good 20 seconds after he again infuses it with that typical synth sound. Bjorke really is an expert in creating and sustaining that feel. Even at 3:15, when he stops and just lets the ethereal synths take over for a moment, returning to slow and deep at about 3:45. This track has vocals (by Urdur), but this is the instrumental version of it. Since my favorite Bjorke tracks all do have vocals (think of the wonderful ‘Young Again’ or ‘Efficient Machine’ for example) I can’t wait to hear the upcoming mini LP this guy is releasing, because even sans the vocals this is a mesmerising piece of work.

'What U Do' by Moullinex & Lorenz Rhode

Apparently, a love for Stevie Wonder was the base for this house stomper, with Lorenz Rhode on vocal duties and Moullinex making sure the beat, the rhythm, and all the synth sounds are there for the dancefloor. First it’s primarily the beat that gives the dancers something to dance to, but after a good minute there’s a more pronounced bass, and then the synths start coming in as well. Soon though, the bass takes over again, with the synths moving away from rhythm duties. At 3:30 it gets a moment to its own though, with the beat and bass stripped completely. Then vocals come in, singing that You’re the only one, as the synths start building up and up, working towards a return of the B&B brothers for rhythm. Rhode implores you to Never stop, and with the rhythm provided by Moullinex there’s really no reason to.

‘Emmanuel' by JKriv & Free Magic

JKriv and Free Magic waste no time in getting the bass rolling in a mid-tempo kind of pace, bringing the loungy horns and piano in for some jazz vibes. And the write-up below the track isn’t lying when it talks about that jazz feel, because this certainly does transport you to a nightclub where people smoke with a smoke holder and do some jivin’ to the band on the stage. I love the piano that gets in there and gets increasingly more prominent, just to get some rhythm with that soft and sultry bass just before the two minute mark. The low key transitions are real nice, shifting its allegiances, small motion in the pace, and sometimes adding a bit of this, a bit of that. Apparently the A-side to this release is a party dance track, something which we’ve seen JKriv work often, but this one takes it back to NY '30s with the dresses and the lasses doing that slow dive jive late at night.

‘Don’t Tempt Me’ by Adam Chini

At about twenty seconds in the bass rears its head providing a nice dancing groove in just the right pace. Then, the super smooth vocals, asking Girl, don’t talk, don’t talk tonight, adding shortly after that She’s looking so fine. It really has that right pace with the bass to get close and do some of that love dancing to with the one you’re having your eye on. I like the instrumental interlude that follows. It is lengthy, but the bass keeps moving it forward, so you’re protecting that bit of funk to keep people dancing with each other. After the next batch of vocals, again, the instrumentals, adding some new ones but also returning to the sounds of the instrumental period before. It’s got this nice vibe of lovin’ in there to cozy up on the dancefloor to. The Soundcloud link is a teaser, for the full track go to the Bandcamp page.

‘U & Me’ by Alkalino

How about some of that House by Alkalino? The synths set the rhythm, but soon the bass and drums come in to give you the whole shebang. In the mean time, the soulful vocals are singing U and me, ohhhh! Alluding to some of that sumthing going on. In the mean time, Akalino is not stingy with the pace, giving us that good house speed with the rhythm, and providing all that for the right house vibes. Including the vocals, giving you that one line on repeat, and when it rests, the instrumentals are sure to pick up the slack. The full track gives you the whopping seven minutes worth of this, but it probably only takes these three minutes to hear the house in this one (so get those dancing shoes shined babes, we’re gonna go clubbin’ tonight!).

'1999' by Prince (Nightfunk remix)

Playing the tunes of those that have passed on does keep them alive a little bit, doesn’t it? Nightfunk takes on Prince, bringing in the dancefloor house beat, though he dials that back even before the track hits the minute mark. No worries though, an even more house like rhythm is brought back in (as in, old school house vibes there), with at 1:30 the high pitched vocals of Prince coming through the deeper beats. Around the two minute mark he dives into Prince a bit more, as he sings that we are Going to party like its 1999. Though the beat that re-enters definitely has its roots way before the millennium mark. Which isn’t a bad thing, as it allows for some old school jackin’. At 3:40 he starts working the original riff a bit, which definitely provides a touch of funk. Just another one of those Prince remixes that will help with the good vibes on the dancefloor.