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: ‘Peace’ by Kenton Slash Demon (Lone remix)

I like how this one starts with that deep synth riff, that then gets juxtaposed by the higher pitched pianos. Then, at 25 seconds, the beat, the bass sound that reminds me of something but I don’t know what (do tell in the comments if you do have it) giving it a bit of that funky, R&B feel. I love how that slower bass gets mixed with, alternately, the piano and the beat, the latter giving it a bit more punch. At 2:20 Lone almost goes full piano for a moment, before the beat comes in to help that out, moving a bit more to the dance side of it. At the three minute mark that bass comes back in to give it some attitude, which it does crazily effective. The mixture of these elements, and also knowing when to put them on, when to turn them down, and when to slow down the pace entirely, is what makes this track so good and great to listen to. After slowing it down the bass comes back one more time, before clearly working it down to a close at the five minute mark.

‘Since You’ve Gone’ by Loframes feat. Anoraak

Loframes start this one with rhythmic vocals, under which melancholic tones emerge. At the 18 second mark we get the drum and a little guitar riff, as the male voice sings that the doesn’t know How to feel at times, as, apparently, someone has left. Slowly a more rhythmic undercurrent is put in (as the original drum sound didn’t have that particular function), as the vocals go from higher pitched to a bit deeper voiced. At the 1:48 mark there are some catchy synths as the track builds towards a moment where they pick up the pace, in the mean time the singer sings that he wants to close his eyes. It’s a lovely track, catchy in the right places, a nice build-up, but also a tad melancholic, not forgetting the emotion already alluded to by the title. Loframes get a bit of help from Anoraak, who I rate highly always, so that’s a sign of quality right there.

 ‘Come Back Lover’ by Fresh Band (Alkalino rework)

Alkalino takes on the Fresh Band, and it is clear where Alkalino is heading from the twenty second mark on, putting that frenetic guitar riff in on top of that steady dancefloor beat. More percussion at the fifty second mark, so that there’s really no mistaken that, yes, this is for the dancefloor, with Alkalino keeping the pace up on this '80s tune. Just after the 1:30 mark we get a nifty bassline in there as well, giving you more to do that boogie to. This is balanced by the horns, first rearing their heads around the two minute mark or so. Three minutes in they go a bit piano on us as well, letting that celebrate some freedom, and thirty seconds later the vocals come in for the first time. And they are singing, nay, pleading, Come back, lover, come back. The vocals, at all times, keep that distant feel, with the instruments remaining the center of attention. Only late, after the six minute mark, we hear a more forceful, less edited vocal sing Come on baby, in a more urgent manner than before. In the mean time the bass keeps rolling, the drum keeps hitting, and the piano/horns/guitar keep providing us with all that goodness to have that dancefloor boogie going on.

‘Set Fire To Me’ by Willie Colon (SanFranDisko mix)

SanFranDisko immediately pumps this up, indicating dance dance dance from the get go. The pace is real high, getting a bit juxtaposed by the synth sound that comes at about 50 seconds in. At 1:10, the vocals for the first time, with at 1:20 Willie Colon entering the verse as he sings that You’re the one for me, take control of me. The percussion and the rhythm of the vocal give it a Caribbean slant for me. And the trumpet at 2:45 as well, which is real fun, because you don’t quite hear that kind of horn sound very often in there. In the mean time the vocals keep imploring to set fire on them as, at 3:35, the piano comes in, which then slides into a bit of funky rhythm with the bass and the percussion. SanFranDisko deliver again on a funky remix that, through its original, gives it a particular slant to get on the noise, get on the funk.

 ‘Chemical Love’ by Animal Feelings feat. Nomi Ruiz

Animal Feelings recently released an album, with this cut being a slowed down electronical track with a steady, low-paced beat on top of which the keys provide the feel for this song. Which is helped by the dreamy, wispy vocals of Nomi Ruiz, which at the minute mark get a moment sans the beat and with some backing vocals as she sings she Can’t resist it. Then Animal Feelings pick it up again, giving both a steady groundwork for Ruiz as well as some additional help with the synths in terms of evoking the right feel. At 2:20, again, the beat gets tuned out, with just the vocals and piano doing some work as, first, the synth is added to Ruiz’ vocals before everything else is added again. At the end, as Ruiz has clocked out, the drum gets a tad more forceful, though the piano balances it out again. A nice, dreamy track, helped in part by the Ruiz vocal turn.

‘Heads’ by Bob James (George Kelly mix)

George Kelly starts with the percussion and a bass underneath, before diving into the beat a little while later. At the 35 second mark we get some higher pitched sounds in, and at about the 50 second mark we get into funkier territory right there and then. He establishes a nice groove, mixing all the parts smoothly, giving you this understated disco vibe to be dancing to (look at, for example, the change-up happening at around 1:55). He throws in some solo piano to boot, giving you something to marvel at as well. By switching and tuning in and out all these sounds Kelly crafts a smooth disco ride from this 70s Bob James track, going all instrumental on us for us to sway a bit in the discotheque.

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: ‘Sunny Side Up’ by Junktion

Junktion starts with a beat, but definitely also with a deep bass, which is the main rhythm going, providing some backbone to this whole thing. After about half a minute they do turn it up though, giving the bass some help, including with a bit of that guitar that they start riffing about on. And that definitely brings in the funk, brings in that sunny side that they’re talking about. At the 1:30 mark, a different guitar, a little change of pace, even though the bass keeps rolling in the background and the beat keeps working it. But the different guitars also shift the tone a bit, adding some variety to this high paced party affair. At the 2:40 mark they bring the sun back in, doing that funky thing with that guitar. And especially those parts are darn catchy, let me tell ya, though the bass makes sure you can shake your booty even in the segment after. I always feel the guitar is under-utilised in tracks for dancing, but luckily Junktion shows it’s got a place in there.

‘Compass Point’ by Holy Ghost!

First come the retro synths, they build up a bit, after which the drums give it a go to give us dat rhythm for dancing. The boys keep working the synthesizers, until they stop at about the 45 second mark, when the vocals are introduced. Obviously, the vocals then start working together with all of the above. The main vocals in the verses are almost talky, more rhythmic, with the multiple vocal layers in the choruses doing some actual chorus singing, trying to convince you to fall in love and Make the same mistakes. And, apparently, they like it When it hurts, so there you go. After the three minute mark we get a rather restrained synthesizer interlude, after which more things are added, including a nice little guitar riff as the track starts jamming its way to the end. I love the band, thought their Dynamics record was ace, and this EP again shows they can mix the disco with the 80s retro vibe for some new school NY dancing.

Scroll down to the bandcamp embed at the foot of this article to hear 'Compass Point'.

‘If You Ever Wanna Change Your Mind’ by Sally Shapiro

Johan Agebjorn released a lovely album called Notes last year, but he also has a more dancey side, that’s when he teams up with Shally Shapiro, doing that chanteuse thing on top of some dreamy disco beats. That is, until the 12th of May, when the duo will release their last single, calling it quits after a run that lasted years and years. The main rhythm is a restrained bass sound in the background, obviously helped by some drum and synth rhythm elements. Then Shapiro comes in, with those far away, dreamland vocals, to which the instruments adapt perfectly. Lots of lovely piano work as well, and as the chorus comes in the pace bumps up slightly, as Sally Shapiro says If you ever wanna change your mind, in such a lovelorn fashion it seems like a fitting way for a band to say goodbye. And for us a good moment to say thanks for the music, and so long.

‘Don’t You Want My Love’ by Vera (SanFranDisko mix)

SanFranDisko always knows how to bring the party in, and here they really get it going at about the 16 second mark, bringing a nice little beat to go with those retro electro synths. At one point, the vocals come in, asking you Don’t you want my love tonight (and who could say no, really)? In the mean time these euro synths keep it working, all the while with the drum beat as a constant to hold on to. In the mean time, Vera has turned more bold, as she just tells you to Try me, try me, try me. There are some lovely corny bits in there, like how the instrumentals work up to the chorus, that’s some super 80 vibes right there. And when she goes diva a bit, that’s some disco karaoke waiting to happen on the dancefloor. And that’s what an edit like this is all about, getting the good vibes in, and preferably in a bit of a cheeky, sexy manner. So, lets get it on, really.

‘Your Name Is’ by Demuir & AntLaRock

From the start, this is House music, with the beat getting it on and the vocals already belting it out with its Baby, baaaby. Then, those familiar old school house sounds are added to it, getting the groovy in and having everybody jacking it up on the dancefloor. Around the minute mark the beat is stripped for just a moment, but soon it obviously comes back, with the soulful vocal turn still singing the same two words. The second time they strip it down they keep the vocals going, add some piano work, and then get that groove back in. So they make sure to play with pace a bit, keep some variety in, but also they know to ultimately return to the core again, which is something nightclubbers always appreciate. At the 3:30 mark, surprise, we get a synonym for Baby in the form of Girl, which I believe is done by a different vocalist. It does indicate a more percussion heavy part after, though soon the synths are back in as well. Just a good House tune for all them niteclubbin’ maniacs not banned by an Argentinian judge.

‘Baby Do You Want To Bump’ by Todd Terje & The Olsens (Daniel Maloso remix)

This week the Primavera Sound festival in Barcelona announced their DJ line-up, which includes Todd Terje. And here’s something to look forward to, with the girls in the back doing a “du-du-du-du-duuhuu” line before some deep male vocals come in, asking Baby baby, do you want to bump. Even, at one point, spelling it out for you (as if ya needed that, eh, we all know what business he’s talking about). In the mean time the synth is doing the dance rhythm in the background, along with some percussion elements. Just before the two minute mark it goes a bit space, and throughout the song we get all kinds of rhythm synths thrown at us to keep us moving as the girls, in different pitches, are still going Du-du-du-du-duuhuu. It’s a high paced ride that doesn’t let up, so for those still able to dance after a festival day, Primavera Sound at least gives you a reason to get them dancing shoes on.