Fervent house enthusiast Citizen aka London based Laurence Matthew Blake hits Kerri Chandler's MadTech Records with this absolutely rip-roaring, floor-filling, ecstasy-inducing stonker of a record. His sound harks back to that soulful 80s Chicago sound where all things house began. The Adam and Eve of house, if you will, yet still retaining a modern twist with a garage beat. The very meaning of timeless. Thank you Citizen.
I heard the original of this only last week, and really liked both the vocals and the gradual build up. This remix by the Maribou State boys is transformative; even more relaxing, ethereal and beautiful than the original.
Shlohmo and Jeremih? The collaboration of dreams. Vocals and production go pretty much perfectly together. The only thing that could potentially top this would be a Shlohmo collab with Drake...
Typesun are playing alongside Maceo Plex at Motion in Bristol over Easter weekend, and I'm gutted to be away from the city. This is the remix of Typesun's new single 'PL' brought to you by two other Bristol boys, Behling and Simpson. Their years of experience shine through, producing a increased tempo, house mix of this slow R&B track.
Such a refreshing take on a song which has become my treadmill/exercise song of the moment. Kidnap Kid takes snippets of the vocal from this Rudimental track, replaying them on a loop. Incredibly clean and tight production as ever.
IT'S FINALLY HAPPENING, THE GALDEM HAVE FINALLY MANAGED TO PULL THEMSELVES TOGETHER AND NAB OURSELVES TICKETS TO HIDEOUT IN CROATIA THIS SUMMER. Needless to say you can probably deduce from the incessant use of capital letters that I am outrageously excited. I never thought I'd see the day where this many of our group (11 to be exact) would be sufficiently organised in actually following through on long standing plans to book something together for the summer. I've never been so glad to be proven wrong.
I had actually got myself a ticket last year and was planning on going with a couple of close friends but was mortified on realising that I had work experience starting the Monday after the festival and that obviously it would run late into Sunday night and the chances of me making it into London on time for work in the morning were average to slim. But that's all in the past now and I can only help but believe that God is giving me a second chance.
The feedback I've had of Hideout over the past two years has been overwhelmingly positive mostly thanks to the painstakingly careful construction of such tremendous line ups, this year including UK Bass heavy weights Chase & Status, Skream & Benga, Rudimental, SBTRKT, Julio Bashmore and other such big names. The beauty of Pag Island itself has got to be one of the other main factors of Hideout's magnetic attraction, placing over 100 acts in and around the stunning Zrcé Beach in it's many open air clubs and of course on the notorious Hideout Boat Parties.
The notably different atmosphere to that of other Croatian dance festivals was something that came up often when talking to last year's Hideout attendees with most highlighting it's difference from the other whopping and successful Croatian festival Outlook. Although Outlook is no doubt the boss of beach festivals the emphasis was that Hideout offered a more chilled vibe, a huge factor probably being the more heavy dub and drum&bass orientated nature of the Outlook line ups, where as Hideout leans more towards the house side of things. Hideout is also decidedly more glamorous than Outlook as the majority of Hideout's festival goers opt for staying in apartments in nearby Novalja.
One of the things I am most looking forward to is being far out at sea, watching the sun go down, and busting some serious moves whilst listening to the dulcet tones of Redlight, Bondax and Gorgon City. Yep, that's right, I've got We Own Boat Party tickets AAAHHH YEEAAHHH. Unfortunately our group had to split down the middle so the other half will be heading to the likes of Joy O and Jackmaster on the Numbers Boat Party which I am absolutely gutted to be missing but as I haven't seen Redlight or the Bondax boys since back in November (too long for my liking) I had to go for the We Own Boat Party. Seeing Skream & Benga tear it up on a boat would've been a very special moment, especially as I'm loving Skream's foray into disco ventures at the mo, but alas these sold out at the speed of light.
It's hard to pinpoint a few names out of the mass of talent that Hideout has got in store for me but West Coast producers Eats Everything and Justin Martin (UK and US west coasts respectively) are up there with the acts I'm most eager to see along with the likes of Tensnake, Baauer, Ben Pearce and Kidnap Kid.
So I leave you with Hideout's 2012 highlights to give you some idea of what glorious madness awaits me and be sure to expect rave reviews the minute I'm back.
Drum & Bass quartet Rudimental have caused quite a stir with their club banger 'Waiting All Night' and although there's already a range of remixes circulating, my favourite has got to be Clean Bandit's more chilled and soulful take, supplementing it with their eccentric and original instrumental vibe, most notably the addition of strings. Can't wait to hear more of Clean Bandit's unique, creative and seamless electronic-pop. Can Black Butter do no wrong?
Apart from finding out that J.Wiltshire is a plasterer in Havant (probably not the same person) I've also managed to find out that the house DJ J.Wiltshire is yet another ridiculously young and able producer hailing from Winchester. It's crazy to think that the kid is barely 18 but is making house tracks with such a nuanced, mature and refined quality, particularly as he only started making music on a laptop a year and a half ago with a little help from his friend Bareskin. They're both recently signed to Hypercolour which boasts an impressive roster of the finest House and Techno talent which obviously bodes well. All three of these tracks have a melodious, intimate and almost dream-like quality which has got me absolutely hooked. Can't wait to see what's in store for this guy.
Brighton trio DrDr are currently making waves with the soulful R&B inspired vocals of Donna Curson and the UK bass/garage/future garage and/or bass (what do we even call it anymore) inspired beats of producers Chris Campbell and Joe Woods. Polkadot gives it a more bouncy house twist in this remix.
Star Slinger is a real life wizard. His remix of New York duo Lion Babe's 'Treat Me Like Fire' is even more upbeat and feisty than the original by putting the infectious vocals on a loop and upping the tempo. Tight as ever.
Polkadot first posted a cheeky teaser of this back in October and I have been on the edge of my seat waiting for the full track. FINALLY here it is. Another sick garage-esque house banger from young Sam Bevan.
Panda, aka old friends Callum, Charlie and Benny, are set to release their debut EP on Bondax's JustUs label next month and BOY am I excited. Similar sunny vibes to that of Bondax and Armeria channelling that deep house bass line, soulful vocals and energetic, lively beat. I foresee big things for Panda this year...BIG THINGS.
Eton Messy founder Adam Englefield has not stopped since the swift take off of his Youtube channel. He DJs as Beluga Boy and is now producing with one half of Thieves under the alias Blonde. Their production endeavours first caught my attention when they sampled Justin Bieber's 'Boyfriend' in their debut 'Talk To You' turning it into something that I actually enjoyed listening to despite its origins, which is a testament to their superior musical skills. However they've managed to top it with the upbeat, garage infused house track 'I Loved You'.
In this remix of 'Doing It Wrong', New Yorker Figgy alters the original almost beyond recognition speeding up the tempo, making it decidedly more up beat and giving it the house treatment whilst maintaining elements of the R&B.
Leeds and London based school pals Lawrence and Louis already made waves with their track 'Only Flaw', garnering attention from all corners of the blogosphere as well as from the likes of Radio 1's Rob Da Bank. Their musical inspiration ranges from their parents' record collections and UK garage to wedding music, and weirdly this motley crew of influences emerges in their latest track 'Marvin'.
Music veterans Waifs & Strays first caught my ear with their infectious tune 'Yeah Yeah' back in 2010 and have been working their deep house magic ever since. Released on Futureboogie Recordings, 'Remedy' is mesmerising and seductive.
Welsh duo Bodhi are seriously channelling that 90s house vibe that's proving so popular at the moment, and doing it with considerable flare and style. The build in tune 'Deliquesce' is so beaut, can't wait to be listening to this loud in the summer sun.
Becca and I were massive AlunaGeorge fans very early on in the game and it's great to see them getting the recognition they deserve for their hugely original, innovative and captivating take on electronic pop. I am eagerly anticipating the release of their debut album on the 1st July but until then am making do with the title track for the album 'Body Music'.
Yet another young (and northern) producer on our hands here. Armeria aka Jake Norman first caught my attention with his melodic and soulful track 'While I've Got It Together' - a chilled future garage tune spliced with R&B elements. This led me to listen to his soundcloud on repeat so I was ecstatic when new track 'What You Need' emerged. Definitely worth the wait - chilled sunny vibes.
I first caught wind of this London based duo on the Eton Messy channel with 'No More Sunshine' last summer. From there things dominoed and I found myself a new obsession. They effortlessly combine elements of house and bass music evocative of that magnetic 'future bass' sound, mixing in dulcet R&B vocals. 'In Need' is another favourite of mine but their remix of Ellie Goulding's 'Figure 8' is probably the most addictive. I expect huge things from these fellas in 2013.
I - unashamedly - love the original of this song. Having definitely rinsed the replay button, seeing that Cyril Hahn had taken his skilled handed to creating a remix, made me very excited. Adding to a gradually building reppatoire of remixes, Cyril Hahn kicks of his 2013 with this deep remix perfectly complemented by Gabrielle Alpin's vocals. Midas touch once again..
Love this track from the London based producer; instrumental and vocals (provided by the 17 year old AME!) are both great, channeling a 90s house feel.
This smooth remix of Flume's 'Sleepless' is brought you by Aussie Charles Murdoch (a member of the band, Mitzi) on Future Classic's label. I've heard a couple of other remixes of this song, but the way Charles Murdoch cuts up the vocals and adds in choppy melodies makes this one stand above the others - proving good things do come from down under.
Not the kind of sound I'd come to know from Skream, but this new track 'Copycat' sees an interesting collaboration with Kelis who brings her distinctive vocals. However, maybe not one to listen to over a cup of tea with your parents..
THIS IS DEDICATED TO MY LADIES IN THE BACK. Amine Edge & DANCE on the remix for Star Slinger, huge deep house floor filler on our hands here. So funky I feel like I need a fro.
