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:  ‘I Gotta Feeling’ by Midnight Magic (Jacques Renault remix)

Jacques Renault and Midnight Magic team up again. Renault already has a beautiful remix to his name of this band’s ‘Beam Me Up’, and this time around he puts the bass and Roth’s vocals to good use for this disco/house stomper. In the background there are all kinds of other elements as well, though it takes up until 1:22 before they even come close to being on the same level as the two aforementioned parts of this track (just to subside in a matter of moments again). It’s definitely the bass providing the dancefloor rhythm, providing the background to the vocals and to the horns that come in after the two minute mark, finally helping out that powerful voice that she’s got, singing that she Feels it coming, coming on. Which must be the horns she’s speaking of (obviously…), or that little bit of extra oomph in the rhythm at about the four minute mark, giving you that final nudge onto the dancefloor if you weren’t there yet (which is unthinkable, surely).

‘I Am A Joker’ by BEA1991 (Nick Monaco retouch)

Nick Monaco gets that piano riff in there from the get go, with the drum providing the rhythm line, though he’s even keeping that one light. Shortly after that, the female vocals come in, and after their first verse there is a short oomph, which continues when the vocals return. In the mean time the piano is still the one strutting its stuff, though it gets taken out and, after a minute, gets replaced by a more bass sound. Though, as main sounds tend to do, it comes back after a short minute or so, getting multiple layers in as well. Then Monaco returns the favor, showcasing that piano in a short solo bid before the kick comes in again to guide this one to its end. The combination of the dreamy vocals, the light percussion, and the piano give it a sort of elegance for the dancefloor.

 ‘Can You Please Crawl Out Your Window’ by Bob Dylan (Slow Hands cover)

So what happens when you win the Nobel Prize (whether you want to or not, apparently)? Why, you get covered by Slow Hands of course. They start it out in a very understated manner, giving it a bit of that jazzy class next to some electro fiddling. Then, the vocals come in, slightly hazy, with the clear and clean guitar sound cutting right through that. At 1:50 the song gets a little push, a little pace, through bass and drums, with the guitar still the main attraction right there. In the mean time, the vocals sing that You can go back any time that you want to (so how can he haunt you?), after which, again, that guitar comes back in for a little solo. Slow Hands show their musicality here once again, this time giving you a little bit of that Nobel class for all y’all to enjoy.

 ‘Peace And Love’ by Tall Black Guy feat. Masego & Rommel Donald

May there be peace and love, that’s the plea this one starts with (and surely, there can’t be enough people spreading that message around). After that, we get that slow jam beat going, with some female vocals and a bit of that gui-tar to bring that Let’s all love each other vibe right on in there. Just before the two minute mark the instrumentals are brought way back, with the male vocals coming in repeating that he wishes you Peace and love. Then, when the female voice comes in to repeat that wish right up until it gets granted, first that little beat comes back in, soon followed by that guitar yet again. The three minute mark is the cue for some of those horns to arrive, which are always a welcome sight. For the final minute and a half they bring it way down, going for a bit of spoken word starting a train analogy that gets mimicked in both word and sound, ending the journey with a bit of that gospel to bring that peace message back on home.

 ‘In Love With’ by Funkformer x Starving Yet Full (DBNN acoustic interpretation)

There’s nothing wrong with a bit of that acoustic sound going on, and from the get go it’s obvious that’s what you’re in for. Then, the half-speaking-half-singing vocals come in, giving you that Shakespearian ode to love talking about that Beautiful scar on your chest. Eventually coming to the conclusion that, yes, I’m in love with you, a line that gets continued into the chorus where some additional vocals are brought in to make sure the message comes through loud and clear. The second time the chorus comes around the extra vocals sing you the lines, with the main voice giving you that soul rendition of it. An acoustic ode to the one you love (or to the one that you left behind), we can never really have enough of those, can we?

 ‘Love Machine’ by Tempst Trio (SanFranDisko re-edit)

SanFranDisko gets the percussion to work, putting that pace in from the get go. Then, the bass, providing a slightly more steady rhythm. Soon after, the guitar riff, a very festive sounding one at that, with the strings only adding to this. The vocals soon come in, with them asking Let me be your love machine, turn me on, see what I mean (you go girl!). Just before the two minute mark the verse comes in as well, accompanied by a nice bass to make sure you can boogie down to this not only in the bedroom, but on that disco dancefloor as well. And it’s got all that Seventies goodness to make those dancers get down, with a handclap interlude around 3:20 to boot. After that he ups the funk, with the strings bringing you back to that disco sound. Put on this tune if you want to bring some sexy into your night out (and really, who doesn’t want a bit of that, let’s be honest now).

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: ‘The Way That You Do It’ by Caserta

There’s no mistaking its dancefloor intent with the harsh, sharp beat at the start. Never a big fan of those, but slowly it starts veering away from that, and at about the three quarter minute mark you get into the disco groove with all those characteristic sounds, especially that guitar that is thrown in there. So suddenly we’ve got ourselves a funky little number here, especially when those vocals come in, which assure us that It is not what you do, but it’s just the way that you do it. I love the moment at about 2:45 when the kind of multiple vocal chorus comes in, that’s just so old school right there, and then he slides the track into this all out funk phase before he starts the vocals up again. If, at this point, you’re not dancing yet, you’re probably not in a funky kind of mood. Though, with that beat in the back to hold onto, you don’t necessarily have to be in order to be staying on the dancefloor. But Caserta has got the mood down pat, making this a pleasurable one for some dancing, especially if, like me, you don’t mind a bit of old school popping up every now and again (at about 4:45 that chorus comes in again, and again it’s just bliss). That piano at about 5:45 is another fine example of that.

‘Private Practice’ by Nick Monaco

The start certainly is an attention grabber, with two ways of vocals coming your way (one heavily distorted and seemingly munching). After that you get the drums, and then yet another vocal layer, which I just love. I love vocals, and this certainly has got it in abundance. And it does still have some rhythm, also with the drums. Still needs to be made into a track though, and you get a deep synth sound that for a minute glues the layers together before, at about 1:40, the munchy vocals run away with the track, and its runaway bride is a deep bass sound that gives it some nasty. At 2:20 the nastiness is replaced by higher pitched vocals and a smithering of piano, and about half a minute later these parts get reunited with the drums and the munchy vocal line. At 3:25 though the deep bass returns. So it is a track of layers and of switch-ups, giving it this experimental feel that definitely puts it left field of what you’ll normally be hearing. Not to mention that it ends with a bit of classic house percussion, so it’s all good.

‘Aller Vers Le Soleil’ by Sebastien Tellier (Hercules And Love Affair remix)

Last week the Hercules and Love Affair gang had the track of the week slot, and here they come with another remix (also, they came with a new, conceptual clip for the brilliant ‘My Offence’ of off their latest album, so check that out as well). In last week’s write-up I already mentioned that in many of their remixes they tend to veer to the colder beats, and here too that’s certainly how it starts until that bass sound comes in. It’s quite a mid-to-slow paced affair this, and at 1:44 you get some lovely synths in there working against a simple kick drum. Soon the bass makes its entry again, and at this point the track has this kind of lush vibe, to which the vocals of Sebastien Tellier (singing in French) only add to. I love the airy synths that are put behind the vocals, they give it a nice atmosphere. After the four minute mark it goes a bit deeper with that bass sound, which they nicely contrast with a tu-de-du-doo vocal line of Tellier, along with some piano. At the end Andy Butler throws in some tech-y sounds that, personally, I could have done without, but overall a nice, lush, lower paced remix by the talented house performers.

‘Enter the Dragon’ by Ooft!

Just love those deep sounds at the start, if that doesn’t tell you that you have arrived at a party where you just need to put your head down and dance I don’t know what does. Also enjoy all the percussion elements they throw in there, and they excellently change that main sound up through the first minute to build some momentum. In the mean time, to keep the variety up, they keep changing and adding to that percussion layer to make sure the track keeps going somewhere. Something which they also achieve by playing around with that synth sound. It’s got a nice immediacy to it I feel, definitely one for the late night crowd this. At about 2:40 it goes a bit arena on you, maybe expanding the sound a bit too much (at least for my personal liking), but especially with the drop they sure cater to the crowd who want to party heartily.

‘Return Of The Mac’ by Jesse Rudoy

I just love the title for some reason, it just tells you something I find. Now, if you like dancing, the Let’s Play House label is where it’s at, so no wonder this cheeky little number is released on there. It’s about a fun night out, no question. So you’ve got all those house instrumentals that make you want to dance, and in the mean time you are just thinking No, honey, they wouldn’t, as the Mac in the title is certainly not Mack the Knife or something. In the mean time Jesse Rudoy just keeps on plugging along with all those traditional house elements that keep people dancing and on the dancefloor. All transitions are so smooth, as are all references to the “original”, they are mixed in there surprisingly well, as if they actually belong in a house track. Certainly, by doing this, he shows more guts than I would ever have, and I like to work with some corny stuff, let me tell ya. And, you know, it works, and try repressing a smile during this one (or to not dance as well, by the way).

‘Two For One’ by Will Saul & Komon

Last month Will Saul released a DJ KICKS mix, and as is customary for these things the “curator” himself adds one or two originals from his own back catalogue. Will Saul decided to add one where he worked together with Komon, providing a deep, spacey cut that relies more on atmospherics than pace. There’s a huge dial down followed by a prolonged build-up around the middle of the track, which furthermore reiterates that the focus is on the deep space vibes to groove to (even more so than dance to I’d say). Though at about 2:48 there’s the big bass sound that, when played in a set, will give the crowd enough to be moving to. At first a bit more introverted, but to those deep drums that at one point come in I’m sure some beautiful people can strike some immaculate poses (really like those drums, by the way, gives it some attitude after the atmospherics of the first part).