Weekly Column: The Froth!

Track of the week: ‘Rise and Fall’ by El_Txef_A (Kasper Bjorke version)

I especially love those vocal tracks that Bjorke has put on his last two albums. Those songs are absolutely ace (and then you’ve got his stuff like his ‘Bette Davis Eyes’ remix as well!). This is one that is nowhere near that realm at the start. It starts off incredibly deep with the beat and the percussion and all that, but he puts the contrast in a little while later with some lighter keys sounds to juxtapose the whole thing. These sounds prelude the vocals, which are somewhere in between I suppose, and they complete the song. Which is good, because if it would’ve gone the whole way like it did during the start, I would worry about that. This though, is excellent. Those deep sounds, and then the rest colours in that atmosphere to create a deliciously full package. I could see this work both as a track near the end of a set, when you go deeper and lower paced, but I could definitely be listening to this walking the city streets at night as well, which sans those auxiliary sounds I definitely wouldn’t be able to. It’s quite a delightful ride Bjorke has crafted, with a nice little ending where he, for the first time, makes those deeper sounds vanish and for, a few seconds, only has the lighter sounds shine through like little rays of sunlight (oh yes, I went there).

‘Turn Me Out’ by Russ Chimes (Ejeca remix)

You can immediately start jacking to this, because that start is no holds barred to be honest. Then some piano house is injected with some party vocals yelling you to “jump”, after which it just goes right off the deep end. This remix certainly is for those who like their tracks to have nuance and sensibility in there, because that’s something you’re surely not going to get here.  I recently read the write-up for a DJ competition that clearly stated that you shouldn’t send in a half hour mix with only complete bangers, so all these people might do well to stay clear from this one, because this would undo all the 24 minutes you’ve just played. With that said, if you are at that point in your set you want one that goes full throttle, this one puts the pedal to the metal as hard as anything I suppose say.

‘One of Us’ by Portecho (James Curd remix)

James Curd must’ve thought lets go space with this one. Space sounds to start, then this nice understated beat, and then these amazing instrumentals come in, including some piano. The beat holds it together so you can have a little dance to this, and the rest is just lovingly mad. I love listening to something a bit offbeat (as in, quirky, not off the beat) now and again, and this definitely has that vibe. The light tones give this kind of an euphoria feel to it, and you can let yourself get carried away by all those strange sounds, which never take it too far because everything is kept together by the beat. This way it doesn’t go astray too far (which wouldn’t be good either, naturally). Four minutes in the beat is given a rest for a moment, and you get a little guitar playing in there, which is by far the most normal sound in music, and surely in this track as well. Naturally this gets some strange space sounds right on through it (normalcy can’t last forever, of course), after which they put some rhythm in there again. Nice and dancey if you’ve grown tired of normal fare, or things where the beat dominates.

‘We Hold It’ by Fusty Delights (Tronik Youth remix)

Tronik Youth gets the electronic sounds ablazing along with the beat on this one. Don’t know what happens at the thirty second mark, but it is soon over and I’ll try to soon forget. I like how the vocals are put into the mix and how it works with the sounds, they nicely go together. Before the three minute mark it all works up to this summery crescendo, before Tronik Youth strips it all down. Before the “main” sound returns they try to shoot us down again with that same horrid effect as at the thirty second mark, but soon they go back to that main electro vibe which, in combination with the vocals, I quite like. Not my most favorite thing they’ve ever done (their track ‘I Know’ is fabulous), but there are certainly elements in here I enjoy.

‘You Can Call Me Al’ by Paul Simon (Flight Facilities remix)

Flight Facilities start with this dull thud sound as beat, but quickly they come in with some percussion, after which they throw in the bass as well (and that dull thud sound thankfully gets pushed waaay into the background). And then, yes indeed, for the first time, Paul Simon with something we all recognize as being THAT song (for surely, anyone who has ever listened to the radio knows about this one, no?). They don’t throw in Simon full in there at once, but they nicely introduce him to the song, not immediately going for that chorus (which everyone knows is going to be coming at one point anyway, so why not build up some anticipation for that eh?). Just before the three minute mark THAT horn section part is thrown in there, and then you for a moment basically get only Paul Simon before the rhythm section comes in again. Then -- and they managed to be patient for 3 1/2 minutes with this -- there comes the “If you’ll be my bodyguard” line we can all dream in our sleep (want to or not). To be honest, if these kind of remixes of amazingly well known songs are well done, I love them (as long it’s not all that’s in your set). It just suddenly adds this magnificent feeling of recognition and togetherness. I was listening to some of Dimitri in Paris’s sets a while ago, where on the more known songs you hear everyone in the club singing along to it, which is just amazing. I was hesitant with that thudding dub start, but in the end it’s all about the song and the enhanced dance rhythms, which make this for some a guilty pleasure, for others simply a delightful dancefloor moment.

‘Lay Me Down’ by Sam Smith (Todd Edwards Vocal mix)

This track starts the way a track called ‘Lay Me Down’ is supposed to start really. After that you’ve got all kinds of botched up sounds I’m not a real fan of, to be honest. Luckily after a minute in those vocals come in, which thankfully are put in there wholly, which causes the fluency to get back in there. Strong vocals those as well, the belt-outs are pretty nifty I would say. Not sure I’d play this in any set of mine, but that is purely because there is something about that beat that doesn’t really connect with me. I like them to run a bit smoother than this one does. The vocals make up a lot of ground though, so it’s well worth your time even if the beat might not be what you’d usually dance to. The end runs a bit long sans vocals though.