[Audio] Sally Shapiro’s reMix album (with Mitch Murder, Little Boots, Lovelock & Nite Jewel)

 

sally shapiro

After the overwhelming success of Swedish ElectroPop duo Sally Shapiro’s third album, Somewhere Else, and the preceding single, the Electric Youth featuring Starman we were eager for more, but we didn’t expect something this hot. Just released is Elsewhere, a reMix companion for Somewhere Else who line-up is a variable whos-who is the cream of ElectroPop talent. It’s a killer meeting of minds that features the likes of Dan Lissvik, Young Galaxy, Lost Years and The Field, but right now we are going to take a look at some of our highlights.

First up, the undeniable king of SynthWave, Mr. Mitch Murder, graces the album with his presence. Reworking All My Life, Mitch delivers on his particular brand or rich, emotional, synthesized soundtrack work beautifully here. The deep, twanging, digital bass and invigorating electronic pulse play nicely against the warm tones to create something head-nodding brilliant. It’s prefect for Sally’s vocals too, the interaction between the chorus vocals and the bass is just amazing. If Mitch if the electronic music king, then our girl Little Boots is the queen. Taking on the brilliantly titled This City’s Local Italo Disco DJ Has A Crush On Me, Boots whips up some mirrorball sheen with a surprisingly gritty hook. Mixing up House and Nu-Disco elements to classy effect, Boots turns-in a slo-mo, soft focus, dancefloor dream. One of the most talented men in retro electronica, Steve Moore, here in his Lovelock guise turns his attention to I Dream With an Angel Tonight, injecting it with smooth, laid back, vintage Disco and Italo sounds with a cinematic feel and a slight mysterious, Sci-Fi vibe. LA synthesizer Funk queen Nite Jewel bring to the table a typically atmospheric and left-field slice of electronics in her rendition of Sundown, loaded with compelling basses and swirling soundscapes turning Sally Shapiro from twee ElectroPop into brooding, but groove, Cold Wave. This is definitely a recommended release, with a stellar line-up and a wide variety of styles, there really is something for everyone.

♫ Sally Shapiro – All My Life (Mitch Murder reMix)

♫ Sally Shapiro – This City’s Local Italo Disco DJ Has A Crush On Me (Little Boots Discotheque reMix)

♫ Sally Shapiro – I Dream With an Angel Tonight (Lovelock reMix)

♫ Sally Shapiro – Sundown (Nite Jewel reMix)

Sally Shapiro’s reMix album, Everywhere, is out now.

Buy Sally Shapiro’s music from:

Lovelock’s ‘Burning Feeling’

Lovelock

From the opening notes of the heavy synth bassline of the title track of ‘Burning Feeling’, the début album from Lovelock, you know something synthetically special is happening. Lovelock is one of the many monikers of Synth legend Steve Moore. I say ‘legend’ because the man has a prolific and consistently amazing out put. Whether it’s as in Zombi or Miracle or as Gianna Rossi or just himself you know that with the Moore stamp on it, you’re in for some amazing, emotional synth work.

His latest release, Lovelock’s ‘Burning Feeling’ is in part a collection of his work under this pseudonym to date, some of the tracks, including the title, date back a couple of years and will be familiar to most fans of synth music, whist some are brand new, and the two sit side by side effortlessly. maybe du in part to Moore’s retro influences, maybe just due to the sheer quality of the songs, nothing on the album sound dated (or at least, not dated in the bad sense of the word). The album is loaded with futuristic Sci-Fi soundscapes and Cosmic Disco grooves, robotic Italo basslines and heartfelt Funk. ‘Burning Feeling’ itself is one of the most powerful SynthPop tracks you’ll hear in a while. Punchy EBM basslines and jackhammer drums mix with epic power ballad vocals to create a weird, but utterly amazing Industrial/Pop crossover. Elsewhere on the album Lovelock presents a more boogie laden Moroder-esque analog Disco vibe with track like ‘New Age Christ’ .Maybe Tonight’ and ‘The Fog’, albeit with his trademark warbling synth solos along for the ride. Mainly, though, ‘Burning Feeling’ is like the best collection of ‘80’s TV themes that never existed. ‘Deco District’ channels a more New York Disco version of Jan Hammer, as does ‘Love Reaction’ which ups the ante with some sweet female vocals. And in the middle of all this future funk and soundtrack majesty sits ‘South beach Sunrise’, a chilled out respite from the energy of the rest of the record, complete with a beautiful sax solo. ‘Burning Feeling’ truly is a masterpiece, an amazingly good album that impresses right from the moment you put it on. An electronic music fan’s record collection is just not complete without this album.

♫ Lovelock – Don’t Turn Away (From My Love)

♫ Lovelock – Love Reaction

♫ Lovelock – Maybe Tonight

♫ Lovelock – South Beach Sunrise

Lovelock’s ‘Burning Feeling’ is released 26th April on Prins Thomas’s Internasjonal imprint.

Buy Lovelock’s music from:

    

Johan Agebjörn’s ‘Casablanca Nights’ revisited

Johan Agebjörn

Swedish purveyor of all things ElectroPop and Disco Johan Agebjörn’s ‘Casablanca Nights’ album was one of our top records of last year, a series of collaboration with some of the best electronic artists and SynthPop singers in the world and some cracking songs. Now two of those cracking songs are getting repackaged in some new and interesting ways.

First up, ‘Watch The World Go By ‘ is finally seeing the release of it’s reMix package. We’ve been waiting for it for a while since it was originally going to be released under the name Plexi Grace. Now, a change of label to Paper Bag Records and it’s back to plain old Johan Agebjörn & Le Prix and a whole host of awesome reMixes. You should all be intimately familiar with the, Lake Heartbeat featuring, slice of ElectroPop bliss by now, and if you’re not what have you been doing with the last year? The reMix package kicks off with German DJ Jam El Mar’s ‘Tripomatic Fairytale’ mix, and pulsating crossover between Nu-Disco and Deep House with some nice eclectic percussion. The track is basically an audio sunrise and sets up the EP perfectly. Along side a majestic workout by Young Galaxy and a couple of smooth reMixes from SynthPoppers Lindberg Palace (a name we haven’t heard for a while) you’ll find Nicolas Makelberge’s version which melds a few frantic elements and tempers them into a chilled Balearic retro Pop track. In addition to this release we also have 80’s Disco legend Alan Cook with an Agebjörn &  Lovelock (Steve Moore) produced cover of ‘Casablanca Nights’ title track, and the three of them go full on Italo amazingness here. I cannot stress how good this track is, it’s not even 80’s Italo influenced, it just is pure 80’s Italo. The track’s tempo has been increased, the arpeggios fly and the both the music and vocals are majestic and shot through with that dramatic darkness that calls for a video shot in a dark, neon lit, alleyway that’s inexplicable full of smoke, but it;s in a studio anyway.  Amazing Stuff.

♫ Alan Cook – Casablanca Nights (Original Mix) (Produced By Johan Agebjörn & Lovelock)

♫ Johan Agebjörn & Le Prix (Feat. Lake Heartbeat) – Watch The World Go By (Jam El Mar Tripomatic Fairytale reMix)

Johan Agebjörn & Le Prix (Feat. Lake Heartbeat) – Watch The World Go By (Nicolas Makelberge reMix)

Alan Cook’s ‘Casablanca Nights’ is released 26th April on 12” and Download on Disco Evolution/Flashback Records. Paper Bag release ‘Watch The World Go By’ today!

Buy Johan Agebjörn’s music from:

Washed Out Eyes Be Closed (Lovelock reMix)

It’s new video from Uncle TNUC time!

This time he’s edited together a clip that perfectly captures the mood, and arrangement, of  Lovelock’s reMix of Washed Out’s ‘Eyes Be Closed’

Buy Washed Out ’s music from:

No shit, Sherlock!: Lovelock

No shit, Sherlock!: A chance to enthuse about music from the last few years that pre-dates electronic rumors, this stuff has probably already been blogged to death years ago, but we need a chance to get how much we love it off our chests. We already love it, you already know and love it…and are probably bored of it, but we’re going to blog about it anyway…

Lovelock

Zombi’s Steve Moore’s side project  Lovelock received a bit of blog attention late last year, particularly for his track ‘Burning Feeling’. The hype was well deserved.

Lovelock’s epic, sonically sprawling, retro SynthPop is serious 80’s teen movie soundtrack stuff. Just like we like it!

The production on these tracks is, at times, staggeringly good. The layering of either Steve’s smooth vocals, or the guest vocalists, with the driving electronics that sometimes verges on early industrial, with ‘Burning Feeling’ and sometimes glides across the dancefloor, as with Maybe ‘Tonight’, is so slick it’s a joy to listen to.

Check out this lot, pure 80’s goodness!

Lovelock – Burning Feeling (zShare) (MediaFire)

Lovelock – Love Reaction (zShare) (MediaFire)

Lovelock – Maybe Tonight (zShare) (MediaFire)

Lovelock’s only release so far has been on Eskimo Recordings ‘Cosmic Balearic Beats Vol. 01’ CD, expect more soon though!

Lovelock @ Beatport

Lovelock @ Juno