Issue 55 music reviews featuring Jason Walker, X-Press2, Abel, Peter Rauhoffer, Paul Oakenfold, Tiesto, Sia and Summer of Space by Jamie Nicholes at Perfect Beat.
Flexible
Jason Walker
Flexible is right. The delicate white boy with Aretha's power releases his sophomore full-length and stretches in some funky new directions. In contrast to his initial release, which was a fierce but homogenous sample of sexy 1 a.m. Circuit anthems, Flexible is a more mellow, eclectic drama club of ten unique atmospheres that explore myriad ways to say something musically while getting a butt or two on the dance floor.
Makeshift FeelGood
X-Press 2
Not that they needed the company, but it seems the experimental approach of Basement Jaxx suddenly has some. On their sophomore album, X-Press 2 takes the aggressive beats of their debut, puts ‘em through a food processor, adds whatever it finds in the dumpster out back, and creates a danceable chunkiness that references way too many influences to list here. Singles from the first album were all vocalist collaborations, so it's no surprise that this time around every track includes some words, and the format is more pop-centric than the other's club orientation. The disc's initial single, "Give It," which was originally release over two years ago, has been re-released with additional mixes by Friscia & Lamboy.
Alegria Universo
Abel
Ever since releasing the first in this three-part series, Abel has expanded the audience of tribal house exponentially with his hooky, vocal presentation of the genre and a meticulous selection of truly intoxicating tracks and remixes. Take his trademark blend of anthemic beats and tribal percussion on Disc 1. Add tribal house interpretations of dance artists like Tamia, Jeanie Tracy, Karen Young and Bob Sinclar. And bake to keep the listener forever wondering where Abel will take them next. As a counterpoint, Disc 2 is composed of "Morning Music," a lighter, more vocal companion to the heavy, complicated rhythm that dominates the night. To match the blown-out blue-and-yellow light of the hour, artists like Ultra Naté, Southside Hustlers, Tamara Wallace, Karen Young and Frankie Knuckles form a continually brightening mood that ends with the sax and strings of the Freemasons' "Pacific," extending the Alegria into the day ahead.
I Love Montreal
Peter Rauhofer
Continuing the I Love… series, Peter ventures this time to Michael Moore country and nestles in amongst the moose and free health care et voila! The mixmaster's interpretation of Montreal's unique vie en rose. Joining the usual cast of Star 69 artists and producers are Dangerous Muse, Dave Audé feat. Jessica Sutta, Kaskade, Axwell, Nelly Furtado and Noir's re-rub of the classic jingle "My MTV."
Greatest Hits & Remixes
Paul Oakenfold
Oakie's career has included underground raves, hyper-publicized stadium massives, ultra-trendy urban hotspots and sold-out nightclub world tours. His body of work, both as an artist and a producer, has spanned nearly as many years as his name has syllables, and earned him the Guinness World Record title of "Most Successful DJ in the World." This compilation attempts to frame that body of achievement. That intention may seem impossible to accomplish with shiny plastic and binary code, but the enormous diversity of the tracks included serves to outline his vast musical ingenuity. That in mind, it should come as no surprise that the album is available in one-, two- and three- disc versions, all of which contain multiple new 2008 Oakenfold mixes of selected favorites.
In Search of Sunrise 6
Tiesto
Few series have ever made it to a sixth volume with the same eager anticipation and continuous critical acclaim like Tiesto's In Search Of Sunrise. With every release, Tiesto carefully cross-sections the ever-morphing genres of trance and progressive house. The world-class DJ calls attention to the newest roster of artists and producers that are defining and challenging the hallmarks and standards of ambient dance music. Here the flying Dutchman presents cultural shifts like the blend of electro and trance, and African tribal percussion atop rounded beats. He also underlines vocalists like Jes, Julia Thompson, Anita Kelsey and Jennifer Rene. And this is the only place you're gonna find Tiesto's own ISOS remix of the indie hit "Hide & Seek" by Imogen Heap.
Some People Have Real Problems
Sia
Sia is a vocalist and songwriter of inimitable integrity and individuality. She is also one of the few people in the world who immediately renders me a girl of thirteen face-to-face with her ultimate idol—I ran into her at a tanning salon in LA and acted like a teeny-bopper backstage at a Justin Timberlake concert. Until recently, Sia was the voice of Zero 7's biggest singles. Then overnight she achieved her American breakthrough as the artist responsible for the musical capstone of the Six Feet Under series when her song "Breathe Me" closed out the finale. On her third solo album, Sia combines the jarring lyrical intimacy of her debut Healing Is Difficult with the whisper-soft instrumentation of her second album, "Colour The Small One", and creates pop-friendly chill-out with her brazen voice and a lush, layered acoustic sound.
Summer of Space
Summer of Space
Haley Gibby, the voice of Summer of Space, seems to be an artist with a true intention and an indomitable will. When she was recognized by Warner Bros. and offered a contract, she declined, deciding instead to continue pursuing her musicality without Big Brother steering the wheel. In 2001, she met producer Finn Bjarnson and explored the musical course she chose instead of commercial success. Later, along with Ryan Raddon (Kaskade), a group was formed, and following the success of their initial single an album was completed and the result is nothing short of aural bliss. Haley's vaporous voice atop emotion-sodden instrumentation plays like a gorgeous footnote to life–quiet, saturated commentaries floating like fog over hills, commanding your attention in the most delicate way possible.
by Jamie Nicholes @ Perfectbeat.com