Prins Thomas gig review + Sample of the week!

On Sunday the 21st of Febuary Prins Thomas graced the turntables on the balcony of the Mercat Cross Hotel in Melbourne’s CBD. Thomas pulled out a whole bag of disco and classic house bangers ranging from Frankie knuckles “Whistle Song” to an incredible cover of Diana Ross “Upside Down” which I’m still waiting to get Identified by the man himself. The Balcony was jam packed full of people getting down to the epic phsycadelic sounds that Thomas played for them and he had them in the palm of his hand the whole gig. Technically he was also excellent mixing seemlessly and for the most part in key from what I could hear blending his bass sounds beautifully and making good use of both CD’s and Vinyl. I will edit the post to include photo’s as soon as I recieve them. Also keep your eyes peeled for a disco edit of Eminem and Nate Dogg’s “Shake Dat” which Thomas played was very cool.

Here it is my sample of the week. Everyone will recognise the chorus and the bass line as the famous Armand Van Helden Club monster “I Want Your Soul”, but the original is a piece of classic 80’s freestyle pop which appeared on the 1985 soundtrack to the movie Fast Forward. Garrett also appeared on Michael Jackson’s 1987 single “I Just Can’t Stop Loving You” and Dennis Edwards 1984 classic “Don’t Look Any Further” released on Motown Records.

Siedah Garrett – Do You Want It Right Now

Bobby

Far, Far Beyond

Ahmad Jamal – Swahililand

One thing that is really enjoyable when looking at music you like is following a thread that a sample has woven through the years. One of my absolute favourites has to be Ahmad Jamal’s majestic Swahililand, from the album “Jamal plays Jamal”. Hip hop nerds will probably be familiar with his work; he has been sampled by many of the greats, and when you hear the quality of his music its easy to see why. Swahililand is an epic 9 minute journey of sublime piano, bass, strings and percussion – and that magical chord progression that the song is bookended by.

De La Soul – Stakes Is High

J-Dilla saw the quality, and in 1996 provided the title track to De La Soul’s album “Stakes Is High”, arguably the best track they have committed to wax. The sample provides the perfect backdrop for their heartfelt lyrics about the bastardisation of hip hop, and the negative impact this was having. This song represents one of the high points of 90s hip hop, if not all hip hop.

The Sunburst Band – Far Beyond

But as well as being able to soundtrack the best in boom-bap, Swahililand also found its way into Joey Negro’s Sunburst Band, in the shape of Far Beyond, from their 2004 album “Until The End Of Time”. A wonderful, summery burst of downtempo dance music, and the kind of song I simply can’t imagine anyone not liking. I don’t think I could ever play a summertime set outdoors and fail to drop Far Beyond in there somewhere. Close your eyes, think of a beach and a mojito, and curse the English winter.

Santero

Gui Boratto

Brazilian born Gui Boratto is a man that needs little or no introduction. His tracks these past couple of years have become a staple point in modern techno and related genres. With two albums behind him on German label Kompakt and a string of remixes for artists including Tocadisco, Pet Shop Boys, Moby and Massive Attack, Gui Boratto has become a serious force to be reckoned with! His latest work for Booka Shade & Mandy on their Donut release is certainly no different. Given out last week for free on Juno, the remix was nothing short of spectacular. From the banging rhythm to the layered melodic patterns, paired with the entrancing arpeggios it really will have you jackin’ all over the dance floor! A fantastic track that strongly compliments the original, but don’t just take my word for it!

Booka Shade Vs M.A.N.D.Y – Donut (Gui Boratto Remix)

Surprisingly that’s not all! Mr Boratto has been a very busy man and at the beginning of 2010 he released a new EP entitled Azzurra. Now Azzurra was a track that featured on Gui’s second album Take My Breath Away, a beautiful slow paced track the kind you like to kick back to as the sun just starts to go down. The revamped and humorously titled “Azzurra – It’s Not The Same Version” for the EP features some new soft and soothing vocals yet still manages to keep the cool Nu Disco vibe down. The EP is backed up by two other fabulous tunes including The Glam and Telecaster and is available from all major digital outlets! Go get it now! I’ve been rocking out to The Glam for the past week and it definitely doesn’t get tiring!

All tracks can be purchased from all the regular places like beatport, juno etc so seriously get on it as this post only has the tracks in 160kbps, and incase your still not convinced here’s a little something extra by the man himself that I’ve been digging this past while as well. Enjoy!

Faithless – Sun to Me (Gui Boratto Remix)

That’s me for one month kids! Keep dancing until next time!

Robocat

Leonardus & Quinten 909 + 2Pac

I’ve been fans of dutch producers Quinten 909 and Leonardus for a while now, so when I found out they were doing an EP together, needless to say, I was hyped. “Heartbreaker” was finally unleashed yesterday for free download (which was an added bonus as I would have gladly payed for it had it been on a label!), and it does not disappoint. It’s a pleasure to listen to, 4 tracks of filtered disco that give me the very same goosebumps I get from the bass drop from Alan Braxe’s “Intro”. I’m digging “Show The World” most.

Leonardus & Quinten 909 – Show The World

And here’s a completely unrelated bonus. Just because it’s a JAM.

2Pac feat. Dr. Dre & Roger Troutman – California Love (Remix)

Till next month,

AY! x