sofatalk: south side (remixes)
Francisco Espregueira
About two years ago we featured one of those EP’s that we keep coming back to. SofaTalk’s South Side is a short but impressive EP, crossing jazz, broken beat, house and funk music elements. Now the critically acclaimed project receives the remix treatment on Broken District, with 4 reinterpretations by Contours, Jus Jam, Tour-Maubourg and Warren Xclnce, taking on the diversity and musical richness of the original release to deliver a a surprising combination of breaks, acid, dub music and house. The french label succeeds in presenting once again fresh music, maintaining the identity of the original work by SofaTalk, but also combining artists with different sensibilities and inspirations.
Tour-Maubourg delivers a Dub mix of “Ella”, retaining the warm atmosphere of the original track, with a deep and elegant Jamaican Dub aesthetic. On his “No Frills” remix, Contours keeps the jazzy, Broken Beat drums from SofaTalk and adds a strong 4/4 kick, giving the original track a real push. The remix then evolves into acid textures… Warren Xclnce (from UK duo Kassian) steps up for the remix of “Raw Ivy”. The London-based producer offers a warm, colourful house revision, preserving the jazzy elements but adding a delicate touch of tech-house. Finally, Broken District’s co-founder Jus Jam closes the EP with his remix of “South Side”, giving a touch of nostalgia and that light atmospheric feeling that is clearly his. South Side (Remixes) is a delicate record that is truthful to SofaTalk’s original work, but comes with an overall feeling of freshness provided by four exciting producers. Available on Bandcamp.