By Danny de Reybekill
Fresh from a stint of British mediocre sunshine, we will be bringing you the sounds of the summer, for you to recline with your juice in hand and tortoiseshell sunglasses upon the brow.
Starting way back over a decade ago on Jamiroquai’s ‘A Space Oddysey’ came ‘Love Foolosophy’ from 2001. Steeped in nostalgia, this is a sound that reminds me of childhood summer parties and those lucky few who had summer birthdays; which of course meant more well attended birthday parties (no bitterness from me, lucky bastards).
Jamiroquai – Love Foolosophy http://youtu.be/oMk1wBPiUIo
Brand new and up to date is the wonderful Clean Bandit, coming together with dancehall don Stylo G for their new single ‘Come Over’. Over the last couple of years, I’ve tracked the progress these guys have made on the consistently impressive label Black Butter Records, home to Rudimental, MNEK & Gorgon City. Download their new album ‘New Eyes’ here (https://itunes.apple.com/gb/album/new-eyes/id810059378).
Clean Bandit – Come Over (feat. Stylo G) http://youtu.be/aaXDzh_zoqM
Back in the autumn of 2012, we came across the imitable Frank Ocean from the Odd Future collective that brought us Tyler, The Creator and Earl Sweatshirt who broke out social conventions with the bizarre but breakthrough piece ‘Yonkers’. One of only a handful, Frank Ocean came out just before the release of his ‘Channel Orange’ debut EP, from which this richboys anthem is taken from.
Frank Ocean – Sweet LIFE http://soundcloud.com/frank-ocean/sweet-life
A personal favourite of mine at the moment, but not something I’d usually choose comes from Busta Rhymes, the former king of rap & hip hop. With Tom Misch’s remix clocking up the plays on the MajesticCasual YouTube channel, I can’t get enough of this chilled out guitar hook and amazing guitar solo in the latter half. Pass me a G&T and let me relax in the sun.
Busta Rhymes – Ill Vibe (Tom Misch Remix) http://youtu.be/-893DnwA2JM
An absolute summer dance anthem from your local wine bars to the streets of Ibiza has been the collaboration between Oliver Heldens’ deep house smasher & the meaty vocals of fellow young gun Becki Hill on ‘Gecko (Overdrive)’. Watch your speedometer when this goes on, no-one likes a man with too many points on his licence.
Oliver Heldens X Becky Hill – (Overdrive) http://youtu.be/kcZMCMI24gs
Nevertheless, we turn the speed up a couple more notches while winding back the clock 12 years to something that still gets anyone with a musical bone in their body moving. Perfect for dappled rooftop babecues and drinks with friends, Brazilian drum & bass legend DJ Marky & XRS with Stamina MC are still my favourite old skool duo. They played on Top of the Pops back in the day, so here is an original video to make you feel old! ‘LK (It’s The Way)’ should make you feel love and loved.
DJ Marky & XRS ft. Stamina MC – LK (It’s The Way) http://youtu.be/PR8iFJefDYE
I’ve been following the recent rise of a trio from Tel Aviv called Garden City Movement, who’ve more than impressed with their mixture of sun-drenched summer sounds and chopped vocal work. A favourite of mine at the moment is ‘Move On’, from the first of two EP’s, which I recently talked about with them here (http://bassexplorer.com/exploring-garden-city-movement-bengali-cinema-ep-pulling-a-prince/).
Garden City Movement – Move On http://youtu.be/651E4R9RjAs
Rising through the heat that was the year of Rudimental, Ella Eyre has spread her wings and since the release of her debut EP ‘Deeper’, her first single is ‘If I Go’, released last month. Picking up MTV, BBC Sof2014 & BRIT Awards, we can expect to hear a lot more quality upbeat tracks from the beautiful Ella. And at like 20 years old, she has a blossoming career ahead of her. Download her album here (https://itunes.apple.com/gb/album/deeper-ep/id767668506)
Ella Eyre – If I Go http://youtu.be/JJr80jXCepc
We are going to top off its summer playlist with possibly the most quintessential addition to your collection. Just like the first time you hear a Christmas song in the winter season, it really isn’t summer until you’ve played this out; yes, it’s arguably DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince’s most famous track from the 90’s, ‘Summertime’. We want some of whatever the ‘Man In Black’ has been taking the last 20 years to keep himself looking that good! Check out the video, full of big shorts and big dance moves…
DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince http://youtu.be/Kr0tTbTbmVA
Twitter: @reybekilljourno
A Classy Gent 