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: ‘Josephine’ by Woolfy Vs. Projections

Chris Rae’s ‘Josephine’ is just one of those tracks everyone who has ever listened to the radio (ever) just knows. The lush vocals sending all their love to Josephine; just tapped into the consciousness of people that one. Obviously, the lads of Woolfy vs. Projections make sure it now is readily available for the dancefloor as well, doing their catchy, funky thing before they slow it down a tad to welcome sounds reminding us of the original track, after which they thrown in a rhythm synth with a beat backbone to get the people dancing again. After the two minute mark we get the vocals, which are not the originals, but more in tune with the electronical offering that we get here. Still, though, they are sending all their love, and Every single step they take, they take it with her. The guitar gives it a bit of that funk with a nice little riff, and the piano infuses it with some of that dreamy on-the-road-thinking-‘bout-my-gal vibe the original also had. It is not a fast paced affair, but ideal for your road trips or your dancing-the-sun-away moments.

‘L.A. Plays Itself’ by YACHT

YACHT are readying itself for the release of their new album, and this is the second single they’re bringing out for that. It’s a bit heavier on the punk/rock vibe than their previous one, but obviously it’s still a danceable, catchy affair with the beat drum and the bassy synth making sure the rhythm is a-okay. Because of the oomph of the drums, and the immediacy of the fairly spoken-word vocals you get this more rock vibe. There’s also a hint of hip-hop there in the timing at certain points. In the chorus they sing that You think it’s like that, but it’s really like this / You never get caught if you’re never locked in. With Claire then asking if you can read The writing on the wall. The track is apparently named after an experimental gay pornographic film, so there you go. Can’t wait for the new album, to be released later this month.

‘Big T’ by Tito Ramos (Joe Claussell remix)

Joe Claussell knows how to make you shake your boot-y, and here he starts with that percussion and that tropical vibe before he puts the four-on-the-floor and gets the upbeat Latin thing going. Along with a bit of that guitar and piano to give it that authentic flavoring. Just before the minute mark he throws in some horns as well before slowing it down for the vocals, as they chant "Brothers and sisters, I want to saaaay..." before diving into a narrative about this guy who did it His way (wink wink, nudge nudge). I love the multiple vocals, giving it this communal atmosphere, like you are dancing at someone’s street party in Cuba or something. And they sure get it going, and Claussell keeps all the auxiliary sounds right in there, with the guitar, the extra percussion, the whole shebang really, to make sure it keeps its momentum and this feel of pace. At about the four minute mark he slows it down a bit, stripping most except for the tom-toms and other percussion. He then first gets the guitar and vocals back before putting the beat back in there for the dancefloor to hang their hat on. Saw Claussell doing his nifty DJ stuff earlier this year, and there was definitely a party vibe there, and this shows why that was.

‘Better Believe’ by Alkalino

How about some of that old school disco, courtesy of Alkalino, who calls in Doctor Love, with the First Choice gang doing their thang. So it already starts with those old school sounds, driven by the bass, the four-on-the-floor, and the percussion elements, and with a nifty little guitar and some horns for extra flavor and that real disco feel. At about the two minute mark the girls call out for Doctor Love for the first time, with the main vocalist taking over at about 2:35, giving it that yearning feeling that fits that disco dancefloor to perfection. And she does the works, doing the growl, the high pitched squeal, just about it all really. In the mean time there’s still the beat, the percussion, the bass, and that little guitar to make it all move forward at breakneck pace. Just one of those fab old disco tunes that knows how to put the yearning and the sex in there, and Alkalino makes sure it gets some modern flavoring to get dancing to all night long.

‘Sunrise’ by Cyclist & Maiko (Aimes remix)

Sunrise this sure feels like, with Aimes taking on this track by Cyclist & Maiko. It is half the percussion cowbell, and half the lazy synth that, after about fifty seconds, is substituted for a more  deeper rhythm synth sound (though they later prove to be able to co-exist as well). The female vocals sing that Your love feels so good, and she certainly is feeling that she can spend her time with you (score!). So I guess that’s sipping-some-tropical-beverages-whilst-looking-at-the-sun coming up. The bass and percussion then move it into a bit of a higher gear, getting into dance mode a tad more around the two minute mark. At about 2:30 they move it into summer and tropical bars with some light, fun-loving synth work, after which they slide it back into the rhythm again, this time enlisting the vocals for some extra help, with the horns coming in as extra back-up as well. A sunny, catchy affair to do some of that late summer dancing to with your love (or lust) one for that night.

‘On & On’ by Crayon feat. Jordan Lee

Let’s go lush and smooth with this offering from Crayon. At about the 20 second mark they go from intro to the actual song, which has this nice R&B vibe with the synth and the particular rhythm of the drum. I like it when that little guitar riff comes in, that’s sweet. At about the minute mark they dial it down for a moment, removing the rhythm elements (especially that synth), but it all comes back soon enough. The vocals are silky smooth, and really give it that '90s R&B vibe, whereas the slick electronics put it more in the nu realm of it all. They plead Ohhh girl, don’t you turn me away. Again, at one point they dial it down, to the point there’s almost merely a sound that seems like fingers snapping to the rhythm, but for the last part they get it on for a moment again to make sure it doesn’t end whilst grinding to a stop. As said, super smooth, super sexy.

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?