Welcome to the Shuffle Button. This week we’re going to be taking a trip throughout electronic music, hopping through genres as we go.
Marian Hill – Down (Franky Rizardo Remix)
We’re going to start things off with some soulful house.
Franky Rizardo is great at taking mellow and emotional songs and putting his touch on them. He always adds his flair to each of his productions, but his true talent lies in not being heavy-handed in his changes. His reimagining of songs always keeps a great portion of the original spirit but transforms them into dance masterpieces.
Marian Hill’s vocal is clearly the centerpiece of this record and Rizardo builds the melody around it using the soulful vibe it imparts. The beat has a house sound and cranks up the energy as the song settles in. However, Franky Rizardo nicely highlights the piano riff and keeps the vibe a mellow.
High Contrast – Kiss Kiss Bang Bang
Now we’re jumping to a faster genre, if not a particularly faster song. High Contrast is a big name in drum and bass, especially the lighter side of the genre. He is one of the biggest names on the star-studded Hospital Records roster.
“Kiss Kiss Bang Bang” is a classic from several years ago. It has all the elements of a Hospital Records staple tune, a melodramatic and crooning vocal, masterfully crafted but not overbearing bass-line, and tertiary elements adding to a moody vibe.
This track shows High Contrast at his best and is a great example of how drum and bass doesn’t have to always be hectic. It’s not exactly a relaxing song, but the emotion that the vocal produces greatly overpowers the energy.
Brame & Hamo – Roy Keane
Now we’ll be getting our weekly allotment of disco with Brame & Hamo’s “Roy Keane”. With this release, the Irish duo is paying homage to one of the most famous Irish soccer players of all time. Why they chose to immortalize him with disco nostalgia is beyond us (we’re not the biggest European soccer fans at RaverRafting). However with this track, understanding the meaning behind the song isn’t necessary because the groove is on point.
It’s a fun tune that combines a classic beat with strings and calls back to the days of bright lights, bell-bottoms, and Studio 54.
Frederick & Kusse feat. Feral Is Kinky – Gully Queen
Finally, we’re starting to jack up the tempo. This song is definitely house, we’re not exactly sure what sub-genre though because it pulls from a few. More importantly, it’s a fun and energetic song that gets you moving.
Many of Frederick & Kusse’s productions fit the mold of the classic Toolroom Records sound. Even with “Gully Queen”, the bass-line has the kind of subtle innovation that Mark Knight encourages on his label. But then Feral Is Kinky comes in and throws the tune on its head. The vocal brings in high tones and distortion that kick the track up a few notches. Whereas most Toolroom productions manufacture head nods and relaxed two steps, “Gully Queen” forces listeners to get down and dirty.
Tre Oh Fie feat. Teratory – Dat Rite Dere
To fully harness the energy we’ve been building, we’re turning onto some jersey club. This genre tends to be fun because it’s all about getting hype.
“Dat Rite Dere” isn’t the heaviest example you’ll find. Actually, because of the changes in beat and melody, it’s a little less uniform than many songs in the genre. The bass-line is tweaked throughout and the high flutes put some melody over the top. Even given all these little elements, it’s still a jersey club song, so the bass is at the forefront. It’s a quick song that packs a punch.
CHOOON of the Week
Fatboy Slim – Rockafeller Skank
So, the plan was to pick our favorite Fatboy Slim song to wind down the post, but that’s like picking your favorite child or your favorite pet, it just can’t be done.
We chose this one by highlighting an unquestionably iconic song that perfectly encapsulates Fatboy Slim’s sound, temperament, and fun-loving energy.
This song was everywhere in the late 90’s. It was surrounded by other smash hits on You’ve Come A Long Way, Baby and it was immortalized with the choreographed dance scene in She’s All That (come on, we had to link it).
It’s a combination of samples that get you moving but come from all different places. The surfs up sounds combined with the wildin’ out guitar combined with, oh we don’t know EVERYTHING.
We’ll close it off with the best complement we can give, this song is as much fun as Fatboy Slim has every time he’s on stage.
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