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:  ‘Changing Of The Guard’ by Holy Ghost! (Andre Bratten remix)

If you know the original (off of that awesome sophomore album by the lads from Holy Ghost!), then you know it certainly wasn’t a deep house slow grind. Which, obviously, this one very much is. You have the deep bass beat going on, there are even some of those industrial sounds haunting around in there, and at 1:07 Andre Bratten ups the pace just a tiny tad before adding a bit more of those original synths. I like the change up at 1:40, where he brings in a melancholic piano (which I assume is from the original, but it’s used so out of context here I can’t quite remember if that’s actually the case). I mean, as far as a remix doing something different goes, this one ticks all the boxes for sure. The original basically has to fight its way through all the deep house layers, which gives it this interesting interplay between an original and that what it then becomes. So for that alone I’d recommend people to actually listen to both tracks. As a stand alone, this is a nice deep house track that especially gets its kicks from the fact that you’ve got those lighter elements that now and again try and rear their heads. The build-up after the break is a nice addition as well.

‘One Night Only’ by Krystal Klear feat. Yasmin

This one starts out with some percussion, but when Yasmin and the synths come in you get the full feel that this track wants to convey. It’s got this kind of R&B vibe, also thanks to that vocals style, with the backing vocals topping that off. You’ve got this bassy, deeper synth dictating the rhythm, with the percussion underneath also helping out in that R&B department. It’s got this catchy pop vibe going on, with that sensual club vibe which gets an extra oomph as Yasmin pleads “give me love”. That interlude at 2:30 followed by the backing vocals is also very genre I think, and Krystal Klear really managed to get this smooth track out there that ticks all those boxes. Yasmin’s vocals fit that atmosphere really well, and it’s lovely easy on the ear. For all those players out there!

‘In Command’ by LeSale feat. Mavin (Jacques Renault remix)

Oh man, just love the percussion groove this one starts with, are you kidding me? Immediately makes you want to take a stab at it on the dancefloor. After about thirty seconds in you get a nifty little bass line as, in the mean time, you can also hear some of those sultry, talky vocals as well. Jacques Renault is definitely riding that bass, adding some percussion to get the rhythm nice and tight, and at the 1:20 mark he adds the synth to inject the track with some extra atmosphere. After that you get multiple synth lines in there, all with a different function and purpose, but also all adding to the track because of that. And because he keeps on adding one line after another it does give you this feel of momentum building, which gets capped off by the vocals coming in just before the three minute mark. And as they whisper in your ear that you’re In command, Renault moves it back to the more beat and percussion heavy side, taking away those synths. The atmospherics are now being added by first the vocals, than the piano. It’s just a delicious track this one, with all those different elements being added and subtracted at exactly the same time. And with those vocals he’s got this little ace up his sleeve which he uses just enough to satisfy us without going for the overkill. Another doozy from Renault.

‘A Simple Design’ by The Juan MacLean (Magic Touch remix)

‘A Simple Design’, in it’s original form, is a behemoth of a track, the dancey, catchy single on the new (and quite fantastic) album of The Juan MacLean. Here, Magic Touch dials it down a notch or two in terms of pace. He seems focus on some of the more organic elements and moves them a bit to the front, which is especially notable at the start. Still, there’s plenty of room for the original, with those sounds still at the core and with Nancy Whang still in a prominent role. But if you take the change-up at about 1:40 for instance, that’s where you see the difference, and in the stretch thereafter you have this combination of the original track and a layer underneath which has been added. The original is still very much recognizable, but tweaks like that give it a different kind of twang. The major change is set in at about 2:50, where you get this bass synth sound that runs away with it at first, and after that some tingly piano that reins it in a tad. So Magic Touch kind of keeps the core of the track intact, but with the pace slightly dialled down and with these new elements smoothly being mixed in he does offer a different perspective on that awesome original dancefloor extravaganza.

‘Do It Do It Disco’  by Myron & E (Tom Noble remix)

Welcome says that funky little bass sound that dictates the rhythm at the start. I like that, especially when those higher and lighter piano sounds come over the top of it. Combine this with those funky vocals and you have this old school boogie track to get some of that thing going on on that dancefloor. It’s one for the dancing together, with the pace being on the lower side, and the vocals do add to that, definitely indicating some kind of Getting it on. It’s a lovely boogie of a track, with plenty of those old school vibes. That ohh-hoo-ahhhh vocal line for example, as well as the backing vocals singing “dance the night away” in that silky smooth kind of manner, with the boogie bass coming in just after them so the ladies can indeed strut their stuff and showcase what it’s all about. Keep on dancing indeed.

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‘Love In C Minor’ by Cerrone (Dimitri From Paris remix)

How about some of that woodwork percussion to get things going, eh? Leave that to Dimitri From Paris, who knows how to get the disco and the funk into things. Add to the rhythm a bit of moaning and other sounds and whispers that have a certain sexual connotation, and you know we’ve got some of that naughty disco going on here. But, also, some of that deliciously catchy bass after about a minute or so. The good man even adds some strings for the full effect, after which the horns soon make their entree as well. So it’s got all those genre sounds that you know, and it definitely has that sexy dancefloor vibe as well. There’s a lovely stop-and-go moment at about 2:35, just to make sure you’re not coasting out there on the dancefloor, though that only lasts for a second or two after which he turns it all on again. At about 3:20 you get some piano in there, after which a lot of horns come in. This all over a parade of sexual innuendo with the lady on vocals saying things like “Don’t stop” and “Go on”, though when she starts singing it kind of sounds like the theme of Love Boat as she simply sings “Loooovve innnn...”. Sure, it may be a fairly bit of kitsch at times, but personally I like that on the dancefloor, it adds to the fun for me. As long as, obviously, it keeps you dancing, and that’s something Dimitri from Paris never has a problem with achieving.

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: ‘Lies’ by Kasper Bjorke feat. Nomi Ruiz

When Kasper Bjorke is on, he is ON! He’s always had these amazing singles on his albums, which he usually mixed with a B-side full of deep house tracks. This time it seems to sway more towards the vocal electronical side of things, with guest bits by, amongst others, Tobias Buch, Sisy Ey, Jaakko Eino Kalevi, and the former Hercules And Love Affair singer Nomi Ruiz. The lovelorn Ruiz is perfect here as she, in the opening bits, paints a scene of broken bottles and broken glass, and asks“what do you want me to do?”. Bjorke’s synth & percussion combo is perfect here, he’s just got this amazing talent to keep it both dancey whilst putting in loads of atmosphere. Here, too, even though most of the sounds are pretty light it still has this air of melancholia, which is perfectly capped off by Ruiz and her narration of love, lust, but certainly not unrivalled happiness. Bjorke works those vocals to perfection, and adds the auxiliary sounds at the exact right times, not to mention the switch-ups like at 2:29, which he has a knack for doing them right. That album is streaming on soundcloud in its entirety as I’m typing this (and has been for a while), and it is definitely a worthwhile listen. And, dare I say it, perhaps the man’s best album yet. And you bet I have that last LP of his on vinyl too!

‘Beats Of Love’ by The Supermen Lovers (altered version)

How about that for coming out of the gates eh? Not holding back in this '80s do-over, with the funk coming in after 20 seconds with that nifty little guitar and that bass doing the groundwork. The vocals come in at about the 50 second mark, and they are delightfully theatrical in delivery. Love the synth that comes in at the exact moment he sings the title of the track for the first time. Totally fits. Love how that guitar comes in now and again, but also how easily The Supermen Lovers just leave it for a moment to focus on something else. The track stays funky and catchy, and totally worth dancing to. It still has that '80s cabaret kind of tinge, that overly theatrical, but I like that. Again, that guitar that comes in at about 3:25, just lovely bit of funky they throw in there. After the guitar gets some burn, they let the track explode again, to just as easily pull some sounds again to come back with the vocals. That’s what I really like here, the way they just play with pace and loudness. Add to that the theatrics and the funk, and you’ve got a killer track as far as I’m concerned.

‘I Believe’ by Bicep and Hammer

Bicep and Hammer start out with some factory sounds (or whatever) on this one, and they keep that up for an annoyingly long time. But after about thirty seconds you get a glimpse of the real sounds that are going to make this one, and twenty seconds later you get the percussion and some vocal work. Add to that a deep bass sound and an increasingly soulful voice, and this track is finally getting somewhere (and that they leave that annoying start sound in, I can forgive them for that). Just love the slow drawl that the bass dictates, and how that is juxtaposed by the soulful vocals just going at it. After about two minutes you get an atmospheric, light synth sound that gives a bit of a counterweight to the bass. That synth also gives it something hypnotic and dreamy, which is nice and which works well with the vocals. The synths also round the track off, one which I like for it’s vibe and the mixture of that voice, the bass, and that synth sound that adds to it from about halfway on.

‘Left Hand Free’ by alt-J (Lido remix)

I like the vocal start of this one, that gives it a nice and funny vibe. Especially when it then slides into this slow piano & whistling combo with the vocals before those dubby beats come in. Again, then, the shooting-you-down-bang-bang with the altered vocals hastily talking you through it come in, which makes the contrast even bigger when the actual singing vocals enter. And that’s what they play with so lovely here, just the contrast between the talking-vocals and the actual singing ones, the piano with the big drums and beats, and the soft and the loud. I just like the creative variety here, on the one hand with this anything goes feel, but on the other hand all the things so calculatedly contrasting each other. Also, during the stretches of one kind of sound, all the instruments and vocals in that stretch fit that specific stretch very well. And that makes it an intriguing listen, though admittedly for some it might be too much, too all over.

‘Running’ by Cassian feat. Cleopold

This one gets going with a synth and beat combo, and after about fifteen seconds the party is on when the drums come in. First though, he retreats the drum to introduce the vocals, but soon you already hear percussion coming back in underneath the vocals, which then get banging again with those tropical vibed synths. At the two minute mark most things get stripped away, with the beat, a minimal synth, and whoo-hooing vocals remaining. Slowly Cassian adds some more sounds, like a bit of horns, before letting the vocals return, from which point on they’re clearly working towards the moment the beat and synths come in again. It’s a fun and catchy track, which get a certain light heartedness from the tropical sounding synths, though that belies the lyrics a bit I feel, with the narrator singing that he’s been Running, all night. Catchy synth tune though, this one, ending it all with a bit of beat and drums.

‘Have Some Fun’ by Tosca (FaltyDL remix)

The title already says it, doesn’t it? Even though this one does start in a lovely, smokey-jazz club kind of way. Which is fun, and even when the catchy elements come in with the drums and bass, it still feels you’re at some jam session at a club with some guys on stage that are all smiling as they try to create something a bit catchy-yet-understated for the cocktail wives to do some dancing to. Obviously, at one point, the track becomes a bit too complex to keep that scenario up, with all kinds of production trickery going on. Though at about 2:40 there’s this moment of bliss where that suddenly is all turned down to get back into that classical mode of the song again, and that’s just wonderful right there. That moment alone makes this track worth those five minutes of your life.

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: ‘Trouble’ by Curses & DKDS feat. SYF

I like the military kind of percussion at the start, but what I love more is how that is juxtaposed by those soft synths that come in. Add to that the soulful humming of SYF, and you have an awesome start. When SYF starts singing that Time flies slowly everything else has to make way, as it should, with only one instrument remaining. When he gets to the core of the track (saying that he is not alone) you get the beat going and a very lovely, lazy bass synth sound to up the ante a little bit. There’s a lighter, faster paced synth sound waiting a little further on, and the beat gets a bit more prominent, to at least give the feeling that the pace is going up a tad. Then the vocals come back in to show that all these elements can co-exist perfectly, so around the middle part of the track you have a pretty intricate web of all those instruments that they have already introduced seperately earlier on. After that the track goes a bit more sparse again, making room for a thudding beat working with that bass synth and some club sounds to get the focus shifted a bit more to the dancefloor. The track ends on a percussion note, but the real ending is SYF coming back to sing one more word, namely the title of the track. I like this song a lot, it’s got loads of atmosphere, I like the way the boys weave those instruments in and out and then combine them as well. Furthermore, big fan of SYF’s voice, so that’s an automatic can’t miss for sure.

‘Pray’ by Clarens

This one starts with the atmospheric sounds, and in its three minute running time you’ll get more and more of the rhythmic elements for the dancefloor. Not yet, though. First we get the vocals and the sporadic beat & percussion, but at almost one minute on the dot (okay, about five seconds after, but that makes for shoddy writing, doesn’t it?) you get the beat, and thus you get presented the possibility to dance. In the mean time Clarens keeps the vocals going, singing about love or something like it. At about the two minute mark you have a short break, after which the beat doesn’t return. Instead, Clarens first goes for some more tropical sounds underneath of him asking to her (or the audience) to Please, don’t go. It is a lovely little song (little mostly referring to it’s 3:33 running time, which for this column, is half of what normally comes to pass) with nice rhythms, and I like the delivery of the lines. Definitely worth checking out.

‘Cruel Intentions’ by Art Department feat. Seth Troxler

You know that this is going to veer to the darkside with a title like that. The vocals already bring you over to the other side, especially the deeper, talky one, which both in terms of content as well as delivery will tell you exactly where this track is at. In the mean time, the song itself, it’s that kind of underground club House that comes on at somewhere after midnight for all the sexy kittens looking for love, lust, or something in between. I really like that you have this long monologue by the deeper voice, and then the kind of chorus comes in with actual singing. As said, the instrumental side of this fits it perfectly, it definitely gives you that 80s House club vibe, which is always very welcome indeed. There’s enough variety going on, and even when nearing the end the guys from Art Department mix it up one more time to make sure you haven’t had the idea that you’ve been listening to the same beat the entire time. Really feel that this one delivers exactly on what it promises and what it sets out to do, so looking forward to the album the lads have just announced to see if they’ve got a whole LP full of that.

‘Make Up’ by Jacques Renault

Never a bad time for a new Jacques Renault EP, one of my favorite producers and DJs out there. Here he starts with the beat, but soon all kinds of sounds come in that make you want to walk out of your booth and straight onto the dancefloor. I just love the synthesizers that come in at about the fifty second mark, that’s lovely, and the track certainly has pace and bravado. And, even, a bit of a rock edge to it I find. He’s definitely not holding back on this one, and he is just keeping the pace high and happening. By adding some extra sounds at the max he always has this illusion of momentum going on, and even when he puts on the brakes, you just feel that it’s just waiting to burst out full throttle again (which he does about 30 seconds later). That moment at 4:55 I really like, that second break he puts in there, and after that he goes on with his steamrolling tactic almost immediately. I’ll be honest, I’m always more of a fan when the disco and (vocal) house are more promintent, but no one can deny this one has pace & party written all over it. No holding back on this one, for sure.

‘Take That To The Bank’ by Shalamar (Werkshy Bank Holiday Rewerk)

Shalamar is one of those bands that just begs for edits, it’s just the way it is. Werkshy takes it to task in this boogie-licious edit, first starting with the funk, then going for the boogie & disco. It’s got all those genre sounds in there, including a nifty bit of guitar, and I just love the change-ups he throws in as well. For example at about 1:45, when he goes from the looping of this catchy bit back to the disco roots. The looping definitely gives this its contemporary club vibe, and on top of those loops finally come the vocals at about 2:25. He goes apeshit by basically kind of scratching the drums and vocals to the breaking point, and I love how he juxtaposes that moment by bringing in the clean disco sounds right on after that. If you like to dance on either some nifty looping action or on Shalamar, then this is a nice edit to throw in there.

‘Love Thang’ by First Choice (Get Down Edits quick fix)

First Choice is one of those bands that I, for one, certainly have some “45s of in my disco bag o’ sounds to bust out on a good day. It’s got the funk in there no doubt, and in this Get Down Edits that’s again totally evident. From the percussion to the guitar sounds to the horns: it’s all there, man. As old school as you’re gonna get it, and deliciously so. Add to that those lovely female vocals singing that It is a love thang and you’re just up and running with this one. GDE just keep riding the funk, keeping all the original instruments coming and coming, with the vocals saying that they’re about to lose control (and guess what, they don’t care. Since, ya know, it’s a love thing). In the middle you kind of get this awesome break introduced by the horns, after which you get this stretch of percussion-with-horns-combo, which is pretty nifty. After that another solo, a nice little guitar riff, and coming in just behind them the vocals come back again to top it all off. This one just rides that 70s vibe in all it’s funkiness, and who can say no to that?

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: ‘Death Jam’ by Frag Maddin vs. Kevin Over

I love the deeper bass sound that this one comes with, that combined with the deep voice that at one point comes in; it all lays down the vibe of that deep underground club where the down and the dirty is happening. The pace of the track is spot on for that as well, not a really pacey club beat, but the exact right kind for this one. Add to that this grainy, dirty synth sound that he adds, and it definitely lays down the right vibe. During the second part of the track the beat kind of slicks out a bit, it becomes a bit more continuous, except for the part that it gets stripped away in favour of a synth and vocal combination. After that break, you get this quick, military like drum pattern which is a nice change-up, and that ups the immediacy of the track a bit. After that, it moves back to the original sound, but a bit more danceable and club like, which, in my mind, is a nice ending to a pretty nifty build-up. Going by the fade out this is not the entire track, but this does make me want to check out a seven minute version (or whatever) of it.

‘Intergalactic Jam’ by Chesus

How about some of that house? This one certainly has that typical beat, and it has got this little quirk going on with the deep male voice constantly saying “thank you”. In the mean time the beat keeps playing on, and around 1:20 you get the change in the main sound with another house staple. That one, a little bit later on, gets combined with that beat again, so now you have the two heavy weights of dancing working together to keep you on the dancefloor. Next to the deep male voice saying "thank you", now another voice walks in on occasion, this one way smoother and singing "whoooaa, darrrling". In the mean time, all the house sounds just keep on coming and coming like a house on fire, with some variety in the beats and percussion to keep it fresh. But all varieties that are thrown in there all make sure that they keep the pace high and they are all there to let you stay in that dancing mood. An ace one for the dancefloor, I reckon, as it seems that everything that’s put in here is geared towards that. And effectively so, I might add.

‘Kavolrak’ by Mr. Top Hat & Art Alfie

This one starts with a lingering, high synth sound which gets juxtaposed by a much deeper beat. The additional sounds are of a more industrial nature, giving you that Berlin warehouse vibe a bit. I like the way they kind of build up momentum, that is nicely done, giving this track more and more urgency and energy, which should translate to the dancefloor. As the song progresses they start throwing in some of those ghostly sounds of the city, which really lay down the vibe of this track and which gives it plenty of atmosphere. Just before the fourth minute mark there is a short drop, which they use to bring back the beat and rhythm in a slightly different way, followed by different kind of sounds to help lay down the law of the land. Mr. Top Hat & Art Alfie are sure to never forgot what this track is all about though, and they keep the beat going so that everyone can keep on dancing. Sometimes they kind of tone it down, like around the six minute mark, which isn’t the song becoming boring, but it’s a sign of the lads being about to mix it up. Nice (deep-ish) House tune with that kind of industrial city vibe that I personally never mind.

‘Your Eyes’ by Majical Cloudz

Majical Cloudz certainly is an intriguing band. With minimal electronics and almost church-like chanting the performance is as bare as it is vulnerable. The way this song starts, again, one couldn’t put himself out there more if they would actively try. A bit later on, though, you get the drums that add some beef to the track, and the singing becomes more ballad-like and musical than it was at the start, spreading the word that he doesn’t need anything. The power behind this project is the fact that the minimal is combined with the outright emotional, giving it such vulnerability it starts to have a real effect on the listener (and if you’ve seen this act live, him on stage epitomizes the feeling a shy kid must have when trying his hand at some high school presentation or cultural event for the very first time. The sheer feeling of loneliness on that stage). The drums make sure that there are moments where the track does give you something extra, which is the variety it needs (if not for one song, certainly for a whole album).

‘J.U.N.E.’ by Nicholas

I just love Nicholas’s tunes, every time I hear this guy I’m thinking, "Yeah, this is House music". This as well, you have this great combination of the house-sounding beat, the slick and smooth vocals, and he throws this light piano sound in there for good measure. That cymbal+kick beat combo is this just so house, and you can definitely be dancing to it in the club. The good use of vocals give it this lovely flavor, exactly hitting my sweet spot. I just love vocal house, and this one definitely fits the bill. In the mean time there are plenty of auxiliary sounds to colour in the blueprint that the rhythm and vocals set, like that lighter piano, but also that kind of bass like sound around 2:15 which, briefly, helps out a bit in the rhythm department. At 4:35 he kinds of mixes it up for a moment, but soon the house beat comes back in for all to enjoy. One I would play in any mix of mine no doubt, it exactly is what I’m looking for, and it is a pretty deft execution of it at that.

‘Rhythm of Auld’ by Julio Bashmore feat. J’Danna

I love that disco like synth sound at the start, that really immediately sets the right tone as far as I’m concerned. The actual song starts at around 35 seconds in, where you get the kind of slower-to-mid paced beat with a slightly melancholic piano line. After a good minute or so you get J’Danna’s vocals, who really provide some punch to this one. Love the rawness of those vocals, which then get juxtaposed by the more slick vocals in the background. It gives the track a soulful feel, especially since it seems that they are asking the Lord. It doesn’t go all out gospel though, as there’s still enough slickness to the beat and rhythm to make it really easy on the ear, almost veering to the pop side a bit. I also like the synth sound that you can hear going right alongside the vocals, it gives the track a nice atmosphere. Definitely something that’s got a wide appeal I reckon, and not in a bad kind of way.