This is a match made in UK heaven. Bondax got my girl Ayah Marar to lead this new, sophisticated, funky sexy house track they’ve got out on their new Mix Album. While Ayah usually gets into some ravier, drum & bassier sounds, she’s still a Triple A vocalist that makes the back end Bondax comes through with wurk. For real girl, this is one of those “walk confidently in potent heels” kind of tracks that you associate with good looking people working/drinking/living in high rise buildings that have fancy floor to ceiling windows. It doesn’t get too crazy and the vocals stay where they need to stay, while an almost whipping around you like wind downtown. Dust Funk is a cool song that I hope to hear at cool parties. (via Fresh New Tracks)
Category Archives: Midnight Music
Midnight Music: Fairchild – Stay Young (Midnight Mix)
I feel like tunes that sound like this wouldn’t have happened if music/band development didn’t happen exactly the way it did. This alt band from down under makes the best of so many influences. Rock, indie, lo-fi, EDM and a bunch of jam feels come together in a cinematic way. This really does make me hope there’s a One Tree Hill or Daria inspired network show that can pick up this mix to use at least a couple of times a season. The “triumph” vibe from it is strong, with the composition & synth chops to match. This is great work, with a great remix, Midnight, layering on top of it even more competence. (via Stoney Roads)
Midnight Music: Hybrid Minds – Summer Rain [Liquid]
Hybrid Minds does wonderful, wonderful things when it comes to drum & bass. They consistently kill it in the liquid space, in a triumphant, symphonic way over and over. This track is no exception. The meditative kick drums & the bassline melt into the vocals that shine through the darkness. Summer Rain is another proof that Liquid can be bursting with feels as it were. It’s hard to describe how different this sounds comparable to what most people think of in their heads when you say “drum & bass” and I think that’s to the genre’s detriment. This is the stuff that people should be introducing the genre to their friends using, maybe saving the gas mask & camouflage hoodie music for a little later in their listening career. If you want to patronize the Hybrid Minds soundcloud instead of the Liquicity YouTube, that’s below as well. I’m all into this track, and since it’s from 2012, this officially counts as throwback thursday. Happy Turkey Day y’all, groove in your gluttony to this 😀
Midnight Music: SLUMBERJACK – Horus [Global Bass]
This one seeps into your awareness, an Indian-infused Future Bass track with enough of a low-end punch to need no explanation. The composition is exquisite, and the broken beat structure melds with the global bass sound choices delightfully. It’s got this feel that makes you think it was an anthem coming out for a World Cup held in Mumbai. The tune is entirely too short, but it definitely explores the space it’s created masterfully. There’s a little Beats Antique here, a little Flashbulb and a lot of skill. SLUMBERJACK is definitely a name to watch out for, with this pair of Perth natives deserving your attention. So show some love and tell em Terry sent you.
Midnight Music: CAZZETTE – Blind Heart (Prince Fox Remix) [Future Wonderful]
Incredible & bravo to Prince Fox. This track is exactly where I want Trap to go as a genre. Vintage guitars reimagined with synths, hardcore vocals and a massive but smooth droop make me want to pregame parties listening to Mega Man. This remix solidifies my “Prince Fox is on Festival lineups 2015” hypothesis. Gotta give it to This Song Is Sick for the huge premiere on this one. This is a break out tune and trap producers need to study the hell out of this one. A fresh sound, one that moves away from gimmicky beats and dumb drops. I’m a huge fan of this developing and will actively yell into the internet as often as I can to make this thing happen. One listen and you’ll agree with me.
Jamie XX Is So Freaking Good At Music.
Jamie XX continues to blow me away. I’ve used the word lush before to describe music, but there’s a thickness, a richness to the soundscapes that Jamie XX creates. This is something I don’t think many artists in the scene approach, much less match. The samples intersperse a different UK scene in his music. This is equivalent for progressive house quoting Chicago House DJs discussing the Chicago House scene. If it was done by anyone less skilled than Jamie XX, it would be downright disrespectful. However, the massive & perfect use of bass and synthetic feels, provides this classic UK rave feel combined with these ragga drums. This jungle infused-garage is sophisticated but effortless. The massive beat seems to fill the spaces in your shuffling awareness, as the samples echo in your mind. Hardcore is a genre that seemed unstoppable, but now you’d be hard pressed to find someone old enough to remember it at a lot of NYC parties. Which, to me is bonkers, but just goes to show you. Nothing lasts forever. Carpe that diem y’all.
Midnight Music: Kanye West vs. Sam Smith – Tell Me I’m The Only One (Carlos Serrano Mix)
Carlos Serrano has been killing it for years, putting out mashup after remix, all quality. My first favorite of his was a mashup of Adele & Daft Punk that is linked below tonight’s track. Kanye & Smith are definitely not sounds I thought would go together but Serrano proves he knows what he’s doing once again. The mashup is soothing even with Kanye thrashing lyrically as he does. Carlos Serrano really does need way more attention than he’s getting. He creates these almost symphonic jams that really hit and has been doing so for a while. Here’s to hoping this soulful mashup gets some more press than I can give it. Check it out, and his previous tune below.
Midnight Music: Willow Smith ft. SZA – 9 (LMC Remix)
Willow has done slightly better creatively than Jaden as of late. While The Karate Kid remake remains wonderful, Jaden’s twitterstream is…messy, to say the least. Willow seems to have done a little bit better, with her soulful, respectful music career getting off to a great start. This remix from a young kiwi by the name of Liam Mcalister. This is a smooth remix that definitely makes me want to listen to both Willow and Liam. What a proper remix should inspire of course. Let it swish around and see that you can use trap for the forces of good as well as evil. (via Fresh New Tracks)
Midnight Music: Zeds Dead – Lost You ft. Twin Shadow & D’Angelo Lacy (Kove Rmx)
While I’ve spoken about Kove a couple of times here on le blerg, this is the first time he’s hit my radar for house. This shift in gears for him is a stunning reminder that talent is talent, with DJs mixing it up more and more these days. This deeper, almost Chicago house offering is a fantastic re-imagining of the Zeds Dead track that’s not due out until Jan 2015. The track premiered on Annie Mac over the weekend, so I knew I needed to get it to you as quickly as possible. Kove shows that he can pull into a much groovier, funky end of the dance spectrum with this track. It’s all fun and games, especially with the pull back 90 seconds in. The build back into the groove goes without a hiccup and you’re shaking without realizing it once again soon after. Hit up the rest of Kove‘s work, especially if you’re a fan of that drum & bass sound like I am.
Midnight Music: Current Value – Exposure [Trance & Bass]
I don’t get to feature this genre of music very often, as it’s just so damn rare. Current Value is one of the artists that’s caught my attention really giving it a try. Trance & Bass, when done properly, brings together the chords & chromatic builds that you love trance for, at the 80/160 tempos that you love Drum & Bass for. When it’s done poorly, it’s utter garbage, but when a proper DJ gives it a try, backed by a decent label, magic can happen. We have that here in Current Value’s Exposure release. Pick this up on Beatport here. The rest of the offering may be a little intense for some, but I find the punchy, rambling beat that Current Value brings to Exposure, combined with the menacing bass, makes for a rowdy track good for any soccer riot pregame. Hit up Subsistenz as well if you’re into this sort of thing, and don’t forget your gas mask!
Terry Gotham 