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: ‘Be A Better Man’ by Situation (Greg Wilson & Derek Kaye remix)

This one starts with a nice synth and a mid-paced beat to get it all going on. Soon, though, we get a little riff in there— which sounds amazing— and the cymbals also do their work. Then, more keys, on top of more guitar, and then a bass sound is added for some extra rhythm. Greg Wilson and Derek Kaye really build this deeper disco sound out nicely, giving something extra every so often to keep it wheeling and dealing, and then, at 1:50, the flush, with the vocals coming in, saying they Go down anywhere you are. I love the vocals, so lush, and the transition from with vocals to without is superb, hitting the right tone with the instruments right there. When the vocals come in, they come in with a little bit of immediacy, adding some momentum to the track. I love the rocky edge the boys give this tune a little bit later in this track, which is the sound they work as they fade out the rhythm for a moment before, obviously, working that one right back in there at 5:20 (doing it with the bass, let me tell ya). Just a real dancefloor corker by the two veterans who just know about how to do all this.

‘My Own Throne’ by Pat Lok feat. Claire Mortifee

I love the secondary sound next to the thudding beat, that vocal line of dah-dah-da-da, a bit higher pitched to juxtapose the other sound at the start (aka , the beat) nicely. After that, some actual singing, saying that she will claim her throne, which is then helped out by a synth sound. After the first verse ends we go a bit glitchy with all the sounds, though that gets balanced out by that same vocal line as at the start (which is a find, let me tell ya). At about the 1:45 mark Pat Lok dials down the beat, going for the vocals and a more gentle percussion sound. At 2:30, after a short build-up, again primarily the vocals, though after that one the main sounds of the song start up again to do some dancing to. The vocals by Claire Mortifee really make this one gel together, not just with the singing, but especially the more rhythm lines she produces, which keeps intact that delicate balance.

‘Atmo’ by Nicholas feat. Paul Cut

I love Nicholas’s dancing chops, and here he starts out by a nice, galloping sound produced by a percussion that helps out the beat. Then, more dancing perc sounds. Whilst all that is going on we hear The People talk and jive and stuff as, just before the 1:30 mark, Nicholas turns up the beat once more, this time getting some of those piano sounds in as well. And, at 2:15, he really gets jazzed up, putting the piano as primary marker, and even continuing the solo as the dance beat returns. Around 3:30 we get the bass that starts plugging along, paving the way for another turn up of both the beat and the piano sounds. It’s just another House music stomper by Nicholas, who just knows how to get them people moving. You can slide this one in on any set, really, helping to keep the big Mo alive.

‘Am I Wrong’ by Anderson Paak (Sammy Bananas Bootleg)

Love how the looping starts, the cymbals and beat laying down the groundwork on top of which the same sound repeats itself at the same moment. Then, at about the forty second mark, the deeper drum, and also already a semblance of vocals, which first audibly come through at about the minute mark with a well placed Well I … Then a subtle, jazzy bass comes in, giving it this nice R&B vibe. The vocals, subdued-yet-soulful, start getting in more lines, now a Only one at a time, which then gets repeated a few times before a little break that is the prelude for a little riff and, especially, a little bit of them horns. Those work up to a return of the bass and the other rhythm sounds, bringing back the vocals as well.  That break-n-horns thing gets repeated a little bit later on, but then the return sees even more horns and even more of that part of the vibe, aside from the rhythm instruments. It’s a lovely slow burner, intricate and one to dream away to at that beach fest as the sun shines.

‘Strong Feeling’ by Superprince

How about immediately starting with that super catchy guitar riff, with the bass working underneath to keep this one moving forward. It immediately sets the tone and pace for this one, which is only added to by the horns that come on, adding the funk, adding the dancefloor soul. Then, the old school vocals, with the gentlemen singing Carry on, as everything keeps Rolling, rolling on. Then, after the unison, the individual vocals, with one man stepping forward and giving you that slick-interpersed-with-a-little-growl-now-and-again vocal turn. When he is done we get the boogie guitar, as the bass sound is still providing the groundworks on which one can dance to. And they sure know how to keep that funky business high up there, not letting up and not letting go of that what gets people on the floor. High paced, high energy, and people can be working up a sweat for sure on this catchy little tune right there.

‘Brick House’ by The Commodores (A Young Pulse Friendly Re-Work)

Young Pulse takes on that old school Commodores sound, giving you all of the good ol’ disco dancefloor stuff that you can handle. Obviously with the drum and bass sound as prime sounds to keep that rhythm right. But also, the horns and the vocals, singing that she is a Brick (horns) house. I love the multiple horn layers in the verses, and then all that funk in the chorus, with that lovely bass second to none. When Young Pulse moves into that chorus, such a smooth endeavor how they funk that up. During the interlude at 2:50 there are some woodwork percussion sounds, then those big, bold sounds we feel we remember those times by, and then, for a moment, they dial it back with just the higher pitched sounds there before the bass re-enters moments later, with the big brass section to help them out. One of those instantly recognisable tracks where Young Pulse makes sure that it brings the funk and the fun for all ages, really.

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: ‘Stop’ by Nicholas feat. Madafi Pierre

Nicholas knows how to do a bit of that house thing, and here he gets the rhythm going with a nice, dulled out beat, a slightly less dulled-out synth, and then a clear sounding percussion; all to get the Detroit on. Then you get these lovely senses-being-dulled vocals, pleading to Stop stop stop playing with my heart. Nicholas turns the cymbals on to give the track a bit of a kick, and they really light up the Christmas tree because it is a pretty clear sound compared to the beat. The vocals also do some spoken word, which is a nice bit of variety, and it always lends this bit of gravitas I find. It really says, All right, listen up, let me tell you something. He dials down the sound a bit around the three minute mark, obviously coming back in with all the rhythm & house sounds shortly after to get the dancing going again. If you, for instance, just look at the sounds at 4:22, this delicious combination of that beat, the more up-front percussion, and this auxiliary sound that so delicately weaves its way through the two rhythm aspects. Then, shortly after, the spoken word again, then the singing comes back, and you’ve got the cymbals delivering the punch again. It’s a super nice bit of house music from the man who has so consistently been churning these out in the past few years.

‘Why’ by Tim K & Honey Dijon feat. Nomi Ruiz

A team consisting of Tim K, Honey Dijon and vocalist Nomi Ruiz take on the old Nile Rodgers track ‘Why’. So you know there’s a little guitar riff in there, along with some almost Jamaica influenced percussion. After about a minute in the vocals come in, first with a la-di-da-di-da, then wondering Why does your love hurt so much, a lyric which fits right in the Ruiz oeuvre. At 1:40 the percussion stops for a moment, and then it’s just a piano and vocals combo, which brings in a nice bit of variety. I like how one of the instruments basically doubles Ruiz’ her vocal line of la-di-da-di-da, and everything does seem to gel really well. It’s got a nice, laidback atmosphere to it through all the wondering of the way love works (and other assorted mysteries of life). As the track draws to its close you get a bit where the bass gets a moment in the spotlight, which is a nice way to draw this one to its ending. Lovely cover from this team of musicians.

‘Talk System’ by Jacques Renault

I’m a complete sucker for Jacques Renault’s dancing tunes, so always looking forward to new work from this guy. The synths come in at about the thirty second mark, the vocals say a thing or two, and in the mean time you just feel he’s building up to the beat, which comes in just after a minute with a kind of military step rhythm. There are like three different layers of rhythm at work there, which is pretty awesome. The speedier, lighter one, the more bass-like sound, and just a regular ol’ beat to take time. Just before the three minute mark he dials most of that down, letting the vocals go on for a slight bit before all that rhythm goodness comes back in again. Which gets an additional kick around 3:28 to make sure that all those lovely dancers get this little jolt of energy again to keep on working it. Renault just knows how to keep that house feel in there, later on the track going for a prolonged stop of the rhythm sounds to then dial it back up one more time with that little bit more pazazz, ending it with that military step percussion. Just some of that good ol’ house music, y’all.

‘Heartbreak Reputation’ by Zimmer ft. Polina

Zimmer is readying his new release, the EP Coming Of Age, which will be out later this month. I love how he starts with those vocals, so dreamy and sweet, and then you slowly get the synths under there. Though it is the percussion element that dictates the (slow) pace at first, which nicely complements the vocals. The synths build and build though, and after about a minute you get the beat & synth combo for a slow synth-pop jam, accompanied by the vocals. After basically a vocal-led chorus the synths come in with a nice hop in their step, with a positive, feel-good vibe, which gets some extra flavour from the aaaaahhh-ing female voice which is a nice bit of extra to have in there. One of those summerday tracks, which is good listening in the heatwave that is happening as I’m writing this one at the moment. Maybe going to see him in a couple of weeks when he’s playing Buiten Westen in Amsterdam, something which I hope will fit in our rigerous schedule of dancing, shimmying, and all-out working it.

‘Coule’Ba’ by Analog Players Society (JKriv version)

JKriv takes on the Analog Players Society’s ‘Coule’Ba’, throwing in some of his strutting guitar play in there to go with all the percussion, beat, and African vocals they’ve already got going there. As well as a nice bass synth to add some of that boogie rhythm to it all. The vocals, though obviously not understanding a word of it, have a nice immediacy to the delivery, and I like how JKriv sometimes stops the proceedings for a bit of that guitar riff goodness, to then slide it back to the boogie again. Which sees the addition of some new instruments in the second go around, including a piano and some less identifiable sounds. Throughout the whole song the immediate vocals put a stamp on things, and the percussion and assorted accompaniments that weave in and out make sure there’s a little boogie there as well. As always, JKriv manages to mesh everything together nicely, so it is all sounding nice and smooth, bringing this little boogie-of-a-tune together nicely.

‘Is This It’ by Kenny Loggins (KB’s SChrebergarten Edit)

This time it is Kim Brown’s turn to get some of that lovely old stuff out there on the dancefloor, bringing the classic Kenny Loggins’ song ‘This Is It’ to a discotheque near you. She carefully builds up to the beat, which jumps in there at about thirty seconds with a nice, soft percussion vibe to it. On top of that there’s the original sound on loop, with just after a minute another one of those sounds which is used as a tease, as she doesn’t quite go to vocals just yet, instead turning back to the rhythm aspects to let all of them people dance some more. And she is in no hurry to get there, too, even doing a bit of playing around with that guitar riff before she turns to Loggins at 2:30. Now that she’s there though, she lets him go at it, with the vocals clear and up front in the mix, doing the whole first verse before she goes back to the guitar loop and rhythm beat combo to dance to. And it is like the chocolate equivalent of the dancefloor, just nice and tasty and filled with a flavor everyone knows. Plus, there are just some of those guys like Loggins, like Michael McDonald, that are just shoe-ins for a disco treatment like this. McDonald who, by the way, rears his head a bit later for the ultimate recognition moment when the chorus is used. The kind of thing I always love, and done in a nice, patient, catchy manner, but with the cheesy chorus pay-off at the end with Loggins doing the works. Which, for me, is a good thing, just to make that clear. Who doesn’t like a repeat of the chorus after having been patient for a good five minutes or so?