So, normally The Weekly Froth! is a collection of six house/disco/electronic tracks that are kind of new (including edits, remixes, singles, etc.). This week though, with Barcelona’s Primavera Sound Festival coming up, and yours truly going there, it is a quick burst of six acts in those genres (or thereabouts) that you might want to catch if you’re going as well, or you might want to listen to anyway because they’ll spice up your… whatever-hour-you-need-to-spice-up.

The Juan MacLean [Pitchfork Stage – Friday, 01:40]

Last year The Juan MacLean released their second album, In a Dream, which happened to be my favourite album of the year. It’s the urban cold mixed with the emotional warmth (and hotness) of house music, which is a mixture that works perfectly. And if you think this second album doesn’t feature enough hits to keep you dancing all night long, they still have super-duper tunes like ‘Feel So Good’, ‘Feel Like Moving’, ‘Give Me Every Little Thing’, and the impeccable ‘Happy House’ to keep that party going until the morning light. I saw them twice when they were touring their first album, and both gigs were amazing, not in the least because of these 23-minute versions of ‘Happy House’ they pulled out of their hats. There’s no doubt in my mind they’ll be equally as good when playing Barcelona in two weeks.

Mike Simonetti [Pitchfork Stage – Saturday, 04:00]

To be honest, I’ve got no idea what this guy is going to do. Is he going to DJ? Is he going to do some stuff from his Pale Blue side project? Is he going to play his Capricorn Rising EP? Or is it going to be like his Albuterol tape he did with Johnny Jewel? Whatever it is going to be (and truth be told, the kind of music does vary pretty wildly, so watch out), this guy knows music, so it’s going to be an interesting adventure with undoubtedly some excellent synthesizer action. Sure, I wouldn’t complain if he’d bust out that ‘Million Dollar Bill’ edit he did and went disco crazy, but if I’m even alive at that point (last day, last band), I’ll be happy with anything that will take my last legs from under me. Do check that ‘Disconet Dilemma’ one (starts at about the 45 minute mark), it’s gold. Pure GOLD!

Rebeka [H&M Pro – Thursday, 23:00]

I like telling this story. When I was visiting Porto with friends, we happened to chance upon a club where, later that night, Moullinex would be playing. Me, being pretty big on that album, stayed even after my friends headed for the hotel, and so I witnessed Rebeka warming the place up with their melancholia and synth-pop action. Their debut album, Hellada, is definitely worth a spin if you have never heard that one yet, and it has some ace tracks on it. A bit more recently they’ve released a new single called ‘Breath’, which does give a good indication of what they do well. Nice, haunting atmosphere, but still danceable with the drum as its base and all the synths. The only thing that they’ve got going against them is that they’re playing at the same time as Antony & the Johnsons, who will have a whole orchestra behind them. I’ve seen them both live already (even Antony WITH an orchestra), so might let the company decide where we’ll go. But if Antony isn’t your thing and dancing and a bit of melancholia is, you can’t go wrong here. I am fond of a small stage, though.

Caribou [Ray-Ban – Saturday, 03:00]

Now, miraculously enough, I have never seen Caribou live, so there you go. Even despite feverishly loving that opening track of his new album. I did see a live stream online once of this lad, though, and that looked pretty good, so definitely looking forward to finally seeing this act live if all goes well. Our Love was released last year, but perhaps even better known is his 2010 release Swim, which I remember real well because it got all this amazing praise. In between he also was Daphni for a while, but now back under his animal moniker he’ll hopefully be giving the crowd that jolt of energy that we will all probably need at 03:00 on the last day of the event.

Tuff City Kids [Bowers & Wilkins Sound System – Thursday, 04:00]

Now, there is actually some real DJing going on at Primavera! For the second time straight Primavera comes with a DJ stage, with the people at Resident Advisor curating the whole thing on Thursday. The closers are Tuff City Kids, who will try to get some of that club vibe into the Barcelona festival. Tuff City Kids are Gerd Janson and Lauer, who know how to handle the dancing department on their own as well, so let alone what they can do in unison. Now, last year, I wanted to get into the dome like structure that was the DJ stage, but I couldn’t because there were just that many people dancing their socks off. So no promises that I can actually tell you all about my experiences from a good night out about town dancing to these fellas. But if you do find a spot on the dancefloor that’s not occupied yet, I’m sure you and your dancing shoes might just have a bit of fun on these beats and all.

OMD [ATP Stage – Wednesday, 22:25]

What?! There’s a Wednesday?! Erm, yes, almost every week actually, but also as part of the Primavera Sound Festival. Not only that, it’s free to enter! Yoinks! So yeah, there’s only one stage, and last year there was quite a delay before kick-off because, you know, showers and rainfall and all that jazz, but attending is a fun way to kick off a good bit of festival weekend. Last year I was able to see Stromae and was dancing furiously to a tight Holy Ghost! performance, and this year I’ll probably be enjoying myself quite a bit with OMD. Because, it is OMD. And it is free of charge. And who doesn’t like a good slice of that ‘80s pop?

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: ‘Give U Up’ by Alkalino

It’s all about the disco with this Alkalino edit, and it starts with those wonderful horns right at the start, very lush. They aid the vocals perfectly, singing that they Just can’t give u up. Bit later on Alkalino adds the percussion for some extra rhythm. Those disco strings come in during the saxophone solo, and in the mean time you’re still dancing to the main beat. After the solo the vocals come in with the verse for the first time, and those vocals are those lovely, deep male vocals. It’s one of those sexy slow burners this one is, with the guitar, the percussion, and the saxophone really laying down the vibe for this one. Not to mention those vocals, from the solo verses to the la-la-la lines that he throws in there as well. And did I already mention that saxophone? If you like to grind it out slowly on the dancefloor to some vintage disco, this really is it.

‘Do It Again’ by Royksopp & Robyn (Moullinex remix)

Robyn and Royksopp are pretty well-known names I reckon, though for me the draw here is Moullinex. These guys released a lovely album two years ago, and they just know how to make something fun and poppy, with a nice disco tinge to boot. Here again, the multi-layered synths and the drums make for a nice canvas to get you in dancing mode. Robyn’s vocals you could pick out of a line-up, and I just love that sound that is on top of the rhythm (and the top sound when the vocals aren’t there, that mimick the hmmm-hmmm vocal sound Robyn puts in at points). That’s just ace. At one point they strip the drums to, obviously, bring them back again during Robyn’s vocals, as she sings that it “hurts so good”. And good it is. It has got all these nice sounds, Moullinex put in some nice variety in the structure, and then you’ve got pop queen Robyn fronting this thing. A fun loving piece of music this.

‘The Same’ by Riton feat. Irfane

Big start with the percussion here, after which he puts in some deep, 80s synths in there for the new wave vibe. The male vocals sound lovely and desperate as this track veers from dirty club to pop and back. Especially in the chorus it really moves to the more pop end of the spectrum, though the darker sounds do give the other parts of the track a slightly dirty edge. At the two minute mark you get a break, with the vocals and a humming synth, after which a slow drum pattern emerges. The synths, in the mean time, are send up skywards, which is the cue for the more dancey sound to come back again for one last push. The percussion is a nice touch, and what I just find enjoyable about this track is how it mixes these two feels into a three minute track with plenty of 80s, darkish pop vibes to enjoy.

‘To The Bone’ Rayko’s Mystic Tiger Soul edit

You get some nice African vibes here from the start, so you know there’s some rhythm there. And that is before the actual beat comes in after about eighteen seconds. Rayko, this guy sure knows how to make an enjoyable edit, and this is no different. It’s just got all the disco goodness, from the beat to the percussion to, after a good minute or so, the deep bass that comes in to contrast the higher sounds a bit. In the mean time someone is hitting the woodwork with vigour, and after 2:14 you get all the deliciousness of the original song, including some big vocals that he isn’t hiding away anywhere. About four minutes in you get another change up with the drums and two different synths. After that another stretch of vocals, and throughout the song he just puts in a host of different sounds to keep it fresh and exciting. It’s just another class edit, with enough catchiness and vibe to get one out on the dancefloor. Maybe the final stretch goes on a tad too long, though the beat and the percussion is still going, so who’s complaining, really?

‘I Don’t Want You’ by Voyageur

Voyageur really lays down the feel for this one, ominous and dark, which kind of fits his mood from the looks of it. He sings that he might not want you, but he also doesn’t want anyone else to want you. A state of mind we’ve probably all been in, and none of us are really proud of that probably. The vocals are kind of that raspy thing that is in vogue, reminded me a bit of John Newman in that sense. The track, musically, has a nice build up, starting first pretty subdued and dark, but the bombast increases, which also goes for the vocals. At first it is more like an inner mind thing, though the demons start screaming a bit further on into the track. The drums really provide the oomph, and I like those distorted vocals they put in the background after about the three minute mark. To me that kind fits with the feel and the mood of this track.

‘Doves’ by Future Islands (Mike Simonetti remix)

Future Islands’ stock has really risen with their most recent album, the fantastic Singles. I read somewhere that they always use a 4-on-the-floor rhythm, which is a pretty well known term in disco land as that is kind of the basic pattern they use in that realm. So no wonder Italo-disco master Mike Simonetti is taking a stab at this one, and he turns the song ‘Doves’ into a slow burning affair with plenty of wavering, moody synths to enhance the feel. But there’s also a nice beat in there, and some woody percussion to propel this one forward and go get people shuffling on the dancefloor. The percussion forms a nice complement to the higher synth sounds, and obviously the lovely deep and emotional vocals would add to basically anything that you throw out there. Around the four minute mark you get the cymbals in, providing some higher rhythm sounds, and Simonetti sure doens’t ration on the vocals. As we are used to from Simonetti, this song is a really smooth ride, with the synthesizers and the downstated beat really flowing throughout the whole song. This seven minute track gains some extra steam near the end, putting the synths a bit louder and creating a bit more of a wall for Samuel Herring to bounce off of. This remix takes the rock completely out of the original, and turns it into a different ride entirely. Which, surely, is what you’ve got to do when doing a remix.