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.

This seems to be a good moment to look back at some of the tracks that were on some of my favorite albums of the year 2015!

Track of the Week: ‘Cruel Mistress’ by Crazy P

It starts off with a nice beat and some ace keywork, and then the smokey, lovelorn vocals come in, and I’m sold. A lovely disco turn from stalwarts Crazy P, and I’m not only talking about this track. The whole album is built to dance, with great vocals from Danielle Moore. And here she sings that Every time I talk, every time I walk, and every time I sing, I want to hear you. In the mean time the drums and bass keep the rhythm going, the synth adds another layer and some flavor, and then when the chorus comes in they get to a piano, a nifty little riff, and a barebones beat, on top of which the vocals yearn for love, singing that they are losing their head. As said, the whole album is wicked with top turns all around the corner, showing that they haven’t lost their touch at all. Au contrair, I would say. [Unfortunately the file

‘I Thought The Future Would Be Cooler’ by YACHT

YACHT is always immensely fun, live perhaps even more so. But also on album, like they showcase again on last year’s 'I Thought The Future Would Be Cooler'. It’s an observation as to where the world is heading, railing against some of the things that are happening, both politically as well as socially, from drones to the whole data collection bonanza. But, not in a lecturing, finger-wagging way, but one with plenty of fun wordplay and, perhaps more importantly, plenty of catchiness in the music to do some dancing to. The verses have a nice rhythm to them to shake your hips to, and the chorus picks it up a notch as they sing that, geez, I thought the future would be cooler. There’s a serious element in the message, but it’s bubble-wrapped in having fun, and that’s a killer combination as far as I’m concerned.

‘Call It Love (If You Want To)’ by George FitzGerald feat. Lawrence Hart

George FitzGerald starts this one off with an almost ‘Chinatown’ synth start, with soon the beat coming in to move this one forward. Then Lawrence Hart arrives with his deep, moody vocals, singing that If you want to call it off, then you can call it off, as the synths are upped in intensity before, at about the 1:13 mark, a deeper bassy synth takes over, bolstering the rhythm section as we are dancing the blues away. Extra drums at 1:45 help out in the depth department, joining the vocals. At 2:15 there’s a short stop and stare before first the synths come in, then the cymbals, finally the Chinatown start, before the whole shebang comes back in to get the dancing going again on top of the vocals. Just a fabulous debut album from the guy.

‘Huarache Lights’ by Hot Chip

Maybe I’m not the best Hot Chip fan out there, because I do think this album might just be their best, an opinion I’m sure many don’t agree with. But as far as catchy tunes are concerned, there’s a boatload of them here. Usually with a bit of fun and tongue-in-cheek added in there, and also touching upon some of the themes of the modern world that might be worth thinking and talking about. But, mostly, it’s about tunes, and as said, there’s just so much fun in this package for me. On ‘Huarache Lights’ they, at one point, get to the chorus, where they sing Replace us with the things that do the job better, with the vocals at one point being swapped out for a more robotic voice, which is just a nice touch. There’s also some soul singing in there, but there’s especially tuneage in there, with lovely drums, catchy rhythms, and plenty going on music wise to hang your hat to. The album title alone, Why Make Sense?, is both throwback as well as applicable to the album’s feel as a whole.

‘Too Much Is Never Enough’ by Bob Moses

On the Domino label Bob Moses churned out his debut album, and that album is just a wicked combination of atmosphere and a bit of a dance feel with the beat always there to provide some rhythm and backbone. Here, too, there’s plenty of percussion to form the canvas on which Bob Moses paints his story, both with words and atmospheric sounds, singing You lost it all before, you feel the blame, whilst the synths then come in to sing their own melancholy song. At 2:07 the pace gets ramped up a bit for the chorus, with the vocals, too, showing a bit less restraint the way they do in the moody verses, pointing out that Too much is never enough, for me. After that he slides into an instrumental interlude, during which the beat moves slowly to the front as it keeps an eye on the pacing while the synth and guitar make sure the feel of the song stays strong. The album is full with those niftily crafted songs, a well done debut for sure.

‘Call It Off’ by Shamir

In terms of fun, Shamir’s album (and live show) definitely is one not to miss out on. This track gets the beat going on top of a nice wobbly synth riff, with Shamir’s high-pitched vocals singing that It’s time to call it off, adding that This time, it’s not my fault. The track is a nice, super catchy marriage between pop, disco, and house, adding some fun also in the clip, where they get some muppetry puppetry going on. Live, like the songs, it’s all colourful, fun, and ready to party, even with a slight apathetic delivery at times, which I kind of dig personally. Another debut, this one also encapsulating a certain youthful energy that helps enjoying this one even more.

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.

This seems to be a good moment to look back at some of the tracks that, at the start of 2015, rocked the Casbah.

Track of the Week: ‘Shelter Me’ by Sade (Late Nite Tuff Guy remix)

Sure, this was posted late December last year, but around the Holidays, so 2014 was about all but shut down by that time, eh? So I think we can still count this one for 2015, and anyway, do I really need reasons to post a super nice, super lush edit of a classic Sade track? Late Nite Tuff Guy knows what to do with it, keeping it soft and smooth, with a bit of percussion to help the tender beat out, but it are the synth sounds that lay down the mood of this one. And something like at 1:55, the transition to the bass, that’s lovely. Then some more percussion again, and soon, those impeccable vocals come in, with LNTG knowing that these are the star and giving them plenty of room. They say that they could see it in Your restless eyes, the truth that she was hiding and you could not disguise. LNTG knows when to add the piano in, appearing at all the right moments, as she is coming to the understanding that she needs A miracle to make you stay. A slow groover with exactly the right pace, mood, and amount of heartbreak. And when she yearningly says she wishes that You could shelter me, and LNTG brings in the horns, that’s the ball game folks.

‘The Man Inside Me’ by Thodoris Triantafillou feat. Nomi Ruiz

This track by Thodoris Triantafillou combines a strong back beat, atmospheric sounds, and the ever longing vocals of Nomi Ruiz. After the first batch of vocals you get a nifty synth sound, and when Ruiz goes to a higher pitch we see Triantafillou follow suit with sounds to match that. At one point the vocals get doubled near the end, providing even extra punch as she sings she is Left alone to fight another storm, not being sure why she still loves you. The track is off of an album that came out in January of this year, and it manages to superbly marry those vocals and melancholic lyrics with sounds that both keep this one moving forward, but also add to the feel of the track. Lovely song from the Greek and the former singer of Hercules and Love Affair.

‘Jolene’ by Dolly Parton (Todd Terje remix)

The thing the world was waiting for probably. One of the more gut wrenching country tracks of mainstay Dolly Parton gets the makeover treatment by the disco king Todd Terje to produce a lovely dancefloor killer. Everyone can now finally dance to the country guitar and the desperate vocals of Parton as she sings, nay, pleads, Jolene, please don’t take my man (and only just because you can, girl! What the heck!). The percussion underneath provides the dance rhythm, and the guitar is the thing that gives it both its vibe, its recognisable sound, and it helps along with the pacing as well. At the 2:30 mark the drums make way for a minute as, for the first time, the vocals come in, after which a happy, slappy bass starts to run along with the track. The combination is just magical, with Parton crooning that He talks about you in his sleep, whilst in the mean time the track keeping the dancing going.

‘Just Give Me Joy’ by Elvin Tibideaux

Way at the start of the year one of my favorite House labels, Let’s Play House, released this doozy by Elvin Tibideaux, who lets the bass get it on and who keeps the pace nice and high. After the minute mark we get a little guitar strumming as well in the background as, in the mean time, the speed is still up and away. At the 1:50 mark there’s a bit of room for a breather, but you know that, soon enough, it is going to come back in its full glory. One of those dancefloor speed freaks with deceptive depth with all the sounds that help out underneath the surface. And, you know, the bass, you gotta slap it people, and that certainly is what Tibideaux does here. Before the 3:30 mark it again takes it down a notch, but after that, Oh glory, there come the vocals! And the guitar is a bit more up front. The vocals are screaming it out, yelling that she needs You!, saying a minute later that she gets what she wants (and If I don’t get it, I don’t want it! You tell them girl). In the mean time the bass keeps this one rolling, only taking it down a minute when she insists that you Stay right there. LPH definitely a label you want to keep an eye on if you love this kind of thing (and who doesn’t, really, now).

‘Be Love’ by Natty Fensie (The Supermen Lovers remix)

In March The Supermen Lovers posted their edit of Natty Fensie’s ‘Be Love’, giving it the cheeky dancefloor treatment. It just has this lovely Lets have fun vibe written all over its face, with a lovely pace gotten through a variety of percussion and bass in most stretches, and in some there’s a little piano and guitar going on. Natty Fensie, in the mean time, is telling you to Give it, and the Supermen Lovers do, at 3:20 by going all out on the synth for example, with the bass providing the boogie underneath. It’s just a lovely fun romp, with enough pace to get down and flirty to on the dancefloor. And, at the end, even giving you a little surprise with some of that cosmic jivin’ guitar as it slows it down for its final minute or so.

‘All U Writers’ by !!!

!!! released an amazingly fun dance album with loads of catchy tunes to get all your dancing moves out, and this bass heavy little number they released at the very start of April, already laying down the groundwork for what was to come. The vocals turn deep at first, but then go up a notch as also the female vocals come in. The bass, meanwhile, is still doing all that ridin’, with some guitar strumming getting in there for good measure. And, at about 2:45, it is that guitar that gets a bit of working room before the bass comes back in to claim its domain and to get all the dancers dancing again. First, though, some vocals, some working up to the inevitable fall, and then, at 3:40, there it is, for all y’all to get that boogie on again. Nice and deep in terms of sound, yet surprisingly upbeat and fun in terms of feel, just one slice of the joy !!! brought with their latest LP outing.

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: ‘Gold Rush’ by Miguel Campbell feat. Benjamin Diamond

This one gets the '80s R&B and club vibe going with that beat, the moanin’ and groanin’, and the synthesizer action. When the vocals come in the song really gets smooth, super catchy with the beat and the bass sound. So this one really makes sure to get it on. The vocals sing that they are In trouble, for, apparently, they’ve got a Crush again. At for example the 2:20 mark Miguel Campbell removes the percussion, getting piano and vocal performances only, after which the funky beat comes in again. Benjamin Diamond sings that It’s such a rush, really feeling the loving there I reckon. Late in the track you also hear a little bit of a riff in there, not up front, but just underneath the smooth top layers to just get a bit of that guitar action in. It’s a super smooth and catchy ride, and part of the new Miguel Campbell album that will be released, well, today I suppose.

‘By Your Side’ by NTEIBINT feat.

This one starts with some percussion, but soon the lush synths come in. At about the 25 second mark it settles down with a slower tempo beat, the synths slightly more to the background, and the detached vocals that become more rhythmic at what I assume is the chorus. They sing they’re Holding on, just for tonight. The combo between the rhythmic delivery and the percussion is pretty sweet, and the way it’s all mixed gives a nice hazy vibe. At certain moments NTEIBINT puts a break in, like at about 2:50, after which he first builds it up with vocals and synths before adding the actual percussion (though there is a slow, far away beat to be found in those moments as well). At about 3:30 the percussion, rhythm vocals, and nifty bassline return for a bit of that R&B vibe of rubbin’ and luvin’. A nice mellow groover to get sweet with your lover to.

‘Uptown Celebration’ by P-SOL

Gil Scott-Heron is one of those guys that always inspires people to do something, and here P-Sol take on some of his music to make a celebratory groover. The bassline works together with the percussion to lay down the ground layer, with the high pitched synths making sure that there’s some pace here and that the track, in tone, indeed has a somewhat celebratory feel to it. At about the 1:35 mark we get some nice, quick firing percussion there as well, with still the deep bass tones in to keep the balance right. When they’re  finally there they ride that sound for a while, until they strip most sounds and give the vocals a moment there. Slowly but surely the reinforcements come in, and when we hear the high synth sound we know the beat and bass aren’t too far away to get back to the main groove of this track. This is one side of a 2-part double-header by P-Sol doing the Gil Scott-Heron thing, which was released late last month.

‘The Lady In My Life’ by Alan Mooney

Alan Mooney puts on the breaks with this slow burner of a song. The bass sound is nice and lazy, and slowly more sounds attach themselves to that huffin’ and puffin’ train that is moving over the mountains of Switzerland at a benign pace. In the mean time there is percussion, there are vocals, and there are some other auxiliary sounds as well, though the big beat comes in at 1:35. And it gives time, but time doesn’t go fast around here. At about the 2:20 mark Mooney gets that beat out of there, though another percussion elements soon comes in to make sure that it does keep trotting forward until the beat comes back at about 3:10. In the mean time the vocals are chopped up, giving us one line at a time, with those lines being repeated and coming back seemingly randomly. It is especially the yearn of the female voice that stays with us. At about the five minute mark Mooney plays around a bit with the guitar, and when the vocals come in a bit louder that is the cue for the beat to start rearing its head again. A super sweet super slow burner, that is all about the vibe.

‘Love Will Keep Us Together’ by Captain & Tennille (Sleazy McQueen edit)

Sleazy McQueen leaves no moment untouched to get the percussion and beat in to turn this old Captain & Tennillle track into something for the club. At the thirty second mark we, for the first time, hear a semblance of vocals to go along with the guitar and, some seconds later, the bass. McQueen has, for the first minute, really deconstructed this one. But after the minute mark we get the bass, the piano, and also the vocals that we know so well. Singing, obviously, that Love, love will keep us together (until it’s going to tear us apart again, but that’s a story for another day). McQueen kind of mixes and matches the bass and the piano with the vocals, making sure it sounds nothing like the original, but still has all those characteristic elements of said song. Add to that a bucketload of auxiliary sounds and some extra percussion, and you’ve got a fun romp significantly removed to not be a smack-on-a-beat-and-there-it-is edit. And still with enough of the vocals, which is perhaps always the thing people can cling most to, and which is welcome if only to deliver the message that, Yes, love keeps us together. Add to that a bass that, especially in the second part of the track, grooves it forward, and you’ve got a nice and quirky little edit of a super classic track that, if not done right, always has the danger of cliche lurking there.

 ‘Love Is The Answer’ by Bob Sinclar & Dimitri From Paris feat. Byron Stingily (Club edit)

Lets get those funky drums rolling, along with a nice, steady beat. Soon enough though the piano and horns come in to turn those disco vibes on, with after the thirty second point it having all the marks of one of those fun, soulful funky tunes with all them all singing that Love is the answer. At the minute mark the main vocalist gets his turn, singing his stuff on top of the bass and drum combo as he sings that he Comes to one conclusion, which is the cue for the choir to come in to sing that, yes, Love is the answer (and don’t ya forget it!). In the mean time the lads make sure the pace is kept high, and the morale too, with the good vibes running all over on this dancefloor certainty. It’s just got all the hallmarks for that, with the rhythm delivering at breakneck speed, with the soulful vocals, and all the disco goodness with the horns and piano. There is the big stop at the 3:45 point, with first just the vocals, then a bit of guitar to mix with the piano, and then there’s a drum and piano combo where the piano is allowed to strut its stuff, first rhythmically, and then as a solo when the bass takes over the rhythm. After that, the horns, and the vocals, and we’re banging it all out again. Just one of those edits that can light up a club with its feel good demeanour and the pace to pull it all off.

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: ‘Keep On Talking’ by Tensnake (Gerd Janson Raw Mix)

Gerd Janson and Tensnake don’t leave anything to chance, diving in there with some wild drums, a beat, and a deep bass sound to make sure that you understand that this is for the club. From the back to the front we hear a light synth sound coming, and when that synth sound has arrived to the fore, that’s the cue for a new rhythm to come in to shake all those lovely dancers up a bit. Around the 1:40 mark the synths start to arrive, even momentarily replacing some of the percussion as the track builds up to the fall, which comes at the two minute mark with some delicious house piano. That one is just awesome, pushing the beat to the background as it becomes the main sound. Not for too long though, as it is replaced not a whole lot later by some synth action that comes in to perform a similar function. After that it’s back to the beat, with some wobbly synths in there to flesh out the sound. Some drum action ensues, after which the track picks up the pace a bit to really make sure that everyone is dancing, if they weren’t already. The beat is stripped for a short while, though obviously it comes back, and it brings a little friend with it in the form of that nice piano action we already saw earlier. Just a lovely slice of house music here, with two mainstays in the scene doing what they do best.

‘Birthday Card’ by Marcus Marr & Chet Faker

From about the fifteen second mark these lads get the catchy going, with a nice little distorted bass sound on top of the fast paced percussion, soon evolving into a slow-to-mid tempo beat on top of which Chet Faker starts to croon that he wants to Be something. The bass sound gives it a nice little groove, and the beat keeps the pace in check to fit the Faker vocals. Just before the two minute mark the percussion ramps up the pace a tad, though it’s still the bass that dictates it along with the soulful vocals. There’s some nifty percussion in the background, a nice touch to flesh the sound out a bit on occasion, with sometimes an auxiliary sound taking center stage a bit more, like around the three minute mark. Still though, it’s all about the bass groove and the vocals, singing that they want to Feel your heart. At the four minute mark there’s another one of those auxiliary sounds hogging the spotlight for a short while, this time it being a slightly wonky electric guitar. It settles into a bridge for a moment, leaning a bit more on the rhythm beat thrown in there, though the additional percussion already indicates it’s ramping up for the finale, with Marr diving in there at about the 5:55 mark, with the bass coming back at that point. This after a moment where the track just focussed on Faker’s vocals. Nice groover with some nifty soul added by Chet’s voice.

‘Archetype’ by LukeMillion feat. Jeswon

Luke Million slowly gets this groover on, getting a bit of bass going to go along with a slow-paced rhythm for a track that would fit in one of those 80s soundtrack. It is some nice bit of that '80s synth pop action where the high school hunk is going for that blonde bombshell, finding each other on the dancefloor for a bit of that boogie-woogie. But Jeswon does warn you that She don’t want love, she don’t understand it. So watch out there, sir. At the 2:20 you get that lovely wobbly electronic guitar sound, and there are also some dashes of the vocoder to be found as well. In that regard this track reminds me a bit of that Chromeo fun to get a little funky to on the dancefloor.

‘Analogue Voodoo’ by Craig Bratley

Craig Bratley gets the voodoo out early with the drum beat, doing that New Orleans hocus pocus thing whilst allowing the rhythm to get going. Ominous sounds start at about the thirty second mark to really get the right vibe in there, and just after the minute mark we get some new, major drum sounds along with talking male vocals that are deep and seem to be laughing at our destiny, as probably they’ve put a spell on us. The synthesizers now come in to add to the feel and sound, not so much the rhythm, of the track. That is still firmly in the hand of the multitude of percussion sounds that criss-cross each other. At the three minute mark we do get a new synth sound that is more rhythmic, so that’s another thing you can hold onto whilst dancing. Near the end most sounds are stripped, aside from the main drum beat and the percussion element from the start, riding us towards the ending monologue of the vocals. A few years ago Craig Bratley also released a track called ‘Analogue Dreams’, but pleasant dreaming it ain’t with this one. Trippin’, more likely, with loads of percussion helping you out right there, along with the voice from your nightmares.

‘Nu4him’ by Shanti

This one starts out with a hard, steady beat, immediately laying the groundworks for this one as a club banger. After thirty seconds we get the quick hitting house percussion to up the tempo and pace, almost completely hiding the more bass sound that we do hear in the background. Female vocals come in, telling us (if I’m hearing it correctly) Don’t believe, and as soon as they end some lush synths come in, which are nice and drawn out to balance the fiery percussion this track throws at you. That percussion gets stripped for a moment after the two minute mark, but takes about twenty seconds before they’re back again, along with another synth sound. Just before the three minute mark the percussion gets shaken up a bit, just to throw another angle at you, though the core stays the same, so you can keep your dancing moves steady as she goes. Shanti makes sure the synths always are there to counter the quick house barrage of the percussion and drums, with the break happening just before the minute mark even opting for a more piano sound. After the break there’s another change up on the drum and percussion to ride all the dancers home, with the synth making sure there still is this feel of continuation. Really one for the Berlin night clubs here.

‘Over & Over & Over’ by Sylvester (Boogie Cartel mix)

The start already indicates that this is for the party people, with all them party people sounds coming in along with a quick drum-turning-into-a-fast-paced-beat as the backbone to this whole operation. After the minute mark we get some of those disco sounds, with the starting sounds making sure it doesn’t go all throwback, though especially as the beat comes back in at about 1:30 you do get some serious vogueing potential. The bass that then comes in does shirk more closely to a more vintage sound, with the backbone keeping the tempo up. Then again, there’s nothing quite so hgh nrgy as a bit of that ol’ Sylvester sound, and the thing we’re waiting for at this point is when this boy’s vocal breakout is going to come (though we already here some suppressed vocal work going on way back in the mix). At about 3:13 the pace is thrown up a bit more, and the dancefloor can definitely get a-rockin’ on this one. Around the four minute mark slowly but surely some of the rhythm elements are stripped, though the boogie definitely still is being taken care of. At 4:45 we do get most of the drums out of the way, and just before the five minute mark we really get the disco in, with the horns, the bass, and a steady-yet-simple drum having been turned into the backbone of this whole operation now, and with Sylvester coming your way. The bass really gets the main part from here on out, making sure you can do that little dance until the very end of this near 8 minute extravaganza from the boys of Boogie Cartel.