Jul 13 2012

Black Strobe’s ‘Boogie In Zero Gravity’ EP

Black Strobe

Next week sees the release of Black Strobe’s Boogie In Zero Gravity EP. Having spent the last few months releasing some excellent tracks solo Arnaud Rebotini returns to the Black Strobe moniker as the sole surviving original member, and it seems he’s using Black Strobe to experiment and indulge in a new sound. Whilst the ElectroClash beats and seedy Disco synths that are Black Strobe’s trademark remain, we are also treated to an injection of Southern Blues.

Kinda’ building on 2007’s Burn Your Own Church, but with more swagger, and more soul and more electronics. Where as Burn Your Own Church was pretty much a straight up Rock album, Boogie In Zero Gravity is the sound of the deep south, if Moog’s were dead cheep in the down by the bayou. A mixture of soulful swamp Blues and Chicago House, Boogie In Zero Gravity, and it’s flip side White Gospel Blues are definitely unique, if nothing else. But also brilliantly atmospheric. The reMix package is pretty huge, alongside work from Jeremy Glenn with a brilliant man-machine track and and Drop Out Orchestra sweet laid back Disco (neither of which we’re allowed to play you more than 1m30s of, which isn’t worth bothering with really) is a mix from Elijah Collins, a man making a lot of waves recently. He delivers an atmospheric space Disco track. Slightly brooding and very electronic, Collins brings a different side to the Blues. Fellow Blackstrobe Records producer Museum provides a bonus mix which again, retains the Bluesy fell, but channels that through a vintage synth machine that spits out a pulsating analog workout.

♫ Black Strobe – Boogie In Zero Gravity (Extended Version)

♫ Black Strobe – White Gospel Blues (Museum reMix)

♫ Black Strobe – Boogie In Zero Gravity (Elijah Collins reMix)

The Boogie In Zero Gravity EP is out 16th July.

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Jul 13 2012

Collins’ ‘New York Groove’

collins

New York Groove is the new track from Brazil based producer Collins. The man is currently working on an album for an unnamed record label (but one that we could take a pretty good guess at), but while we all wait for that he’s still dropping tracks to keep the fire burning.

The Kiss sampling New York Groove is an excursive in pure dancefloor fun. The juxtaposition between the Kiss chorus and Collins bouncy vintage synth bassline and arpeggios give the track a sweet party vibe. Collins’ addition of a honky-tonk piano to the mix is a stoke of genius, adding a little theatrics to the sample, crating a tune you just want to jump out your seat and sing along to.

♫ Collins – New York Groove

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Jul 13 2012

Cosmicity’s new EP

Cosmicity

Mark Nicholas A.K.A. Cosmicity was one of the only acts to come out of the so-called ‘Modern SynthPop’ scene with any merit. Sure the scene had itself it;s fair share of good songwriters, but the productions mostly sounded very amateurish. Only Nicholas, along with a handful of others, seemed to have a grasp on production and mixing techniques and a feel for contemporary recordings. He;s been quiet for a few years now but has just released a brand new EP. So how does a Modern SynthPop artist stack up in today’s world, where ElectroPop is back to being a proper thing.

Very well as it turns out, the Parlour Sofas EP hasn’t left the Modern SynthPop scene completely behind, but is head and shoulders above anything that crowd ever released. ‘Sealed In’, the EP’s intro is a blissful, pulsating ElectroPop track with Nicholas’ gently vocals drifting across the song and despite subject matter, is a really beautiful tune. Any Love That Comes Along follows immediately and eases the refrain into a more of a pounding hard dance groove. Again, the melancholy in the track is tempered with pleasing synths and vocals. Remember recalls more traditional Modern SynthPop territory, all EBM beats and arpeggios,  and This Is So Lonely sees the EP out with a moody mid-paced BladeRunner vibe. If you pick up the whole EP you also get the instrumental of This Is So Lonely as a bonus. I’m not sure how much of my enjoyment of this EP is nostalgia, or even if that matters, but it’s definitely worth a listen.

♫ Cosmicity – Sealed In

♫ Cosmicity – Any Love That Comes Along

Cosmicity’s Parlour Sofas EP is out now.

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Jul 13 2012

Violet Tremors reMixed by hardCORPS & Medora

Violet Tremors

Are hardCORPS tracks like busses? You wait decades for one then loads come along at once. It was only this week that an unreleased track from the ‘80’s pioneers surfaced (quickly followed by a couple more), and now that are on the reMix for our favourite ladies of Minimal Synth Violet Tremors. hardCorps’ Clive Peirce teams up with his Medora partner in crime Phen to take on the girls Future Love from their rad Time is The Traitor album of last year.

Future Love was actually one of our picks of the album and Peirce and Phen take the abrasive ElectroPop and smooth it over with an almost Dubby sheen. Reverb washed synthetic percussion and a rolling Dub bassline from the rock on which Jessica’s mantra crashes. the end result is very Cabaret Voltaire, that mixture of Experimental Dub influenced electronics and early SynthPop harsh deadpan delivery alongside otherwordly synths could have come straight out the early ‘80’s underground.

♫ Violet Tremors – Future Love (Clive Pierce (hardCORPS & Medora) & Phen (Medora) reMix)

‘Time Is The Traitor’ is out now.

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Jul 13 2012

Montevideo reMixed by Zimmer and the Discotexas crew

Montevideo

Remember Belgian outfit Montevideo’s Horses from back in February? A track that combined a New York Disco feel (no doubt helped by recording at DFA’s studio) with an Italo feel. The band are currently working on their new release, but in the meantime they, and Discotexas, are giving ways two new reMixes of Horses to tide us over until their second album drops.

First premièred on his last mixtape is Zimmer reMix. A burbling Disco tune that piles on the Cosmic elements and it’s fair share of cowbell. Pure Horizontal Disco, as Zimmer would term it, the track runs with bubbling analog bass and frantic percussion on a galactic trip that deserves an Animé video. The second reMix comes from Discotexas core trio of Moullinex, Xinobi & Mr. Mitsuhirato who kick of with a reverby 909 beat and proceed to fold an ‘90’s House vibe into a European Disco groove, the result is pretty unique and pretty captivating. Totally a track to get lost in.

♫ Montevideo – Horses (Zimmer reMix)

♫ Montevideo – Horses (Discotexas reMix)

‘Horses’ is out now..

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Jul 12 2012

Vince Clarke & The Good Natured

The Good Natured

Amazing! That’s what we thought when we heard there was a collaboration between awesome dark ElectroPop princess The Good Natured and SynthPop legend (and if there is one man in the whole world who you can really use the words SynthPop legend in conjunction with, it’s him!) Vince Clarke of Depeche Mode, Yazoo, Erasure & The Assembly fame. Can it really be as good as he sum of it’s parts?

Ghost Train is certainly something special. It’s a modern update on that particular early 80’s SynthPop sound, juxtaposing the deadpan and the epic within the track. Sarah slips between the robotic and the anthemic, which just the smallest nod to contemporary Pop. Under which Vince works his classic SynthPop magic. Buzzing synths cut through the mix alongside pads that really capture the mood of the track and the lyrical content. We’re not sure where this collaboration is going, but we’d definitely like to see an EP at least.

♫ Vince Clarke & The Good Natured – Ghost Train (Vox Mix)

They have also collaborated on anew mixtape, you can here is here.

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Jul 12 2012

Sohight’s ‘Get It Right’

Keiz Beats are once again releasing the new record from the Russia team up of Sohight  and Cheevy. Sohight has been killing it with every release me drops recently, especially when teamed up with Cheevy’s vocals and this new tune, Get It Right, is no exception.

Following on from their last couple of releases, Get it Right certainly gets synthesizer funk right. It’s a flashy mirrorball tune, packed with emotion and heartfelt passion. Occasionally veering into ElectroPop territory, Get It Right brings twisting Moog Funk, slick Disco, SynthWave chords and a catchy as hell vocal to the mix and spits out a Sohight’s best tune to date. reMixes come in the form of Xtrafunk’s laid back beach party Disco sounds, complete with fantastic synth soloing. Follow Me who turn up the SynthWave for a full on ‘80’s Italo fest and La Zebra piano driven ‘90’s House/Disco hybrid alongside work from Patchwork and Stubbs. The Get It Right single package is full of floorfillers and party starters, you should get involved.

♫ Sohight (Feat. Cheevy) – Get It Right (Original Mix)

♫ Sohight (Feat. Cheevy) – Get It Right (Xtrafunk reMix)

♫ Sohight (Feat. Cheevy) – Get It Right (Follow Me reMix)

♫ Sohight (Feat. Cheevy) – Get It Right (La Zebra reMix)

Get It Right is released 23rd July on Beatport and 08th August everywhere else.

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Jul 12 2012

Moonlight Matters’ Come For Me’ video

Here’s the video for one of the best singles of the year. Moonlight Matters and Hercules And Love Affair’s Gustaph’s Come For Me.

Directed by Kris Lathouwers, it’s just pure shining, neon, Disco goodness. Perfect for the track. Is Seba’s origami bear head just a mask and not a full head?

Moonlight Matters’ Come For Me EP is out now via Kitsuné Music.

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Jul 12 2012

Aminova’s new EP

Aminova

Welsh Playmaker SynthWave artist Aminova has just dropped a brand new EP. Really hot on the heels of his last single, Body Double, this new five track record come just weeks after his previous release release. Is Aminova become prolific? He certainly looks like he’s becoming a workaholic. Have no fear though, from the sound of the Variants EP it appears he can keep up the quality, and that’s what counts.

From the EP’s into, Edges, an undulating multi-layered synthesizer instrumental, you know you’re in for an electronic treat. Edges intertwining melodies soon give way to Cut Glass Accent, a smooth slice of Italo tinged digital Funk. The melodic bassline is really something in this tune which, alongside a handful of B-Boy Electro percussive flourishes give the track a real subway vibe that is the prefect backing for the meticulously crafted leads. Places pulls you back into a deeper flow with ringing, haunting synths set against a gentle Italo rhythm section. A beautiful peice with a slight edge to it, both a hint of melancholy and a sense of optimism. Next up Amoureuse immediately floors you with a Sci-Fi bassline and draws you in with it’s melding of Cut Glass Accents groove and Places ethereal qualities, the real culmination track on the EP it’s five minutes of synthesizer heaven. The EP plays out with Corners a dreamlike canvas on which thick layers of synth tones and textures are painted to ease you out of the listening experience. Aminova is getting better and better with each release, and fast becoming one of the name to look out for on the SynthWave scene.

♫ Aminova – Cut Glass Accent

♫ Aminova – Palaces

♫ Aminova – Amoureuse

Aminova’s Variants EP is out now.

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Jul 12 2012

Justice’s ‘New Lands’ video

Justice’s current single, New Lands,  has got itself vidofied, if anything, the budget just shows how big these guys are now.

Canada (not the whole country) directs the clip, or should I say movie? It’s a spectacle I won’t describe, I’ll just let you watch, suffice to sat if this was turning into a feature length film I would definitely be watching it.

Justice’s New Lands is out now.

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