Jacques Lu Cont - In the Night

That Louis Brodinski from Reims...I just love what he does! And I appreciate the time lag between releases to ensure he is putting out quality, not quantity. His label, Bromance, puts forth its latest with a track from Stuart Price aka Jacques Lu Cont and Monsieur Monsieur. Ooh la la, c'est completement francais! Well, the Lu Cont moniker is definitely designed for Price's tracks that have a french flavour. Some hard hitting electro-disco!

Cherokee & Kartell - Atwater

Well, I wish I had a better story for how I first heard this track. Basically a local club in Montreal I follow on Facebook posted it. They said that it was written particularly for their club. Can be true, considering the track name is called "Atwater" which is a street in my hometown.  Cherokee (a duo consisting of Dorian Miche and Terence N'guyen) and Kartell are two French (from France) artists that collaborated to make said track. Both belong to the Shiny Disco Club label, which explains how they know each other.
The track is an interesting combination of a soft, lounge-style with funky disco house, all the while encapsulating a French touch sound.

F o o t p r i n t z - Fear of Numbers

Its that time again: time I talk about a Montreal artist. This time its F o o t p r i n t z, who insist on keeping spaces between the letters of their name. The duo consists of Clarian North and Adam Hunter.
Pardon me for sounding judgemental, but if you're going to name your child "Clarian," you pretty much guarantee the kid is going to grow up to be a hipster.

They has been releasing on Visionquest, which is run by Seth Troxler, Ryan Crosson, Lee Curtiss and Shaun Reeves. Their track, Fear of Numbers, is extremely reminiscent of 80s new-wave, complete with synths and ethereal vocals. Think New Order, Depeche Mode. Despite not really being a fan of hispters (I worked with a bunch at a music store years ago, and they left a bad taste in my mouth), I really enjoy this record a lot, and am pretty proud to say I'm from the same city as them.

BURNS - Lies (Tiga Remix)

With Calvin Harris' career taking off to unbelievable heights http://jackhadagroove.blogspot.ca/2012/04/superstar-djs-here-we-go-calvin-harris.html, he has taken producer BURNS under his wing. Not sure how that came about, but BURNS is a great producer in his own right, and Harris' probably identified that. Matt Burns did after all release "Iced Out" on Calvin Harris' label, Fly Eye Records. Rumour has it he will be producing for Rihanna's next album. He's also joining Harris to support his tour.
I first noticed BURNS with this amazing track called Heartbeats:

Other notable tracks from him are "So Many Nights" and his collaboration with Fred Falke called "You Stopped Loving Me."

His latest is called "Lies" and contains lyrics which I initially thought were sung by Amanda Wilson on the Freemason's track "Watchin."

You may recognize Amanda Wilson's voice as that from Avicii's "Seek Bromance", or Chrizzo & Maxim's dance-pop hit "Runaway." Instead, the vocal's roots come from Canadian vocalist Deborah Cox's track "Its Over Now." Side note: Deborah Cox is the vocalist on my favorite SHM + LBL track "Leave the World Behind"
So after releasing Lies, the remixes are now available. The best one I heard comes from Turbo Recordings label boss Tiga. Other remixes are from Otto Knows, Skream and Acrobat.

Disclosure - Latch

Guy and Howard Lawrence are back with a new track after the release of their Greco-Roman EP entitled The Face. This track is in the style of Jessie Ware (this time male version), who the young brothers remixed last year. With a smooth vocal from Sam Smith, who also hails from the UK (he's the one featured in the artwork), the track is slated for their upcoming album.



Update 09/10/12: Latch is definitely a song about love as evidenced in the video for the track

Update 22/10/12: Such an amazing remix from T Williams has also emerged

Kevin Saunderson 'The Sound' (Jay Lumen Sacred Sounds Remix)

Reese & Santonio's track "The Sound" is getting the remix treatment from Hungary's Jay Lumen http://jackhadagroove.blogspot.ca/2012/06/jay-lumen-gary-beck-lotus-ep.html, which will be released on Mark Knight's Toolroom label.

Detroit techno king Kevin Saunderson collaborated with Santonio Echols back in 1987 under the name Reese & Santonio.  Saunderson's middle name is Maurice, which became part of one of his aliases: Reese. Hence, his label, KMS, is basically his initials! Check out the original here:

Interesting cause the original was heavily sampled in one of my favorite Todd Terry tracks "Back to the Beat"

To have lived in those times...best music ever!

Candi Staton - Hallelujah Anyway (Larse Remix)

This one has been out for awhile, but definitely deserves a mention. Candi Staton is 72 years old, but her voice is clearly ageless. Known for her gospel and soul records, she is best known in the dance community for her track with The Source entitled "You Got the Love." Florence & the Machine covered the track, and in my opinion, was the catalyst to their success. The track was mashed up with Jamie Principle's "Your Love" and blew the track out of the water:

Well, Ms. Staton is back, and with another uplifting track. With vocals that say:

You have some problems, you need God to solve them, you get down on your knees and pray
When is he coming through, when will he answer you, well it may not be right away
But in the meantime just keep your mind in a positive attitude
And while you're waiting, start praising, he's going to see you through
Here's what you got to do
Praise him til your blessings come down
Praise him til your situation turns around
You've got to lift up your voice and say Hallelujah Anyway, Hallelujah Anyway

So much is going on, what's taking God so long, your back is up against the wall
Pressure on every side, so many nights you've cried, you wonder if he heard your call
You've got to trust him, be patient, he's working behind the scenes
Just keep rejoicing, start dancing, hes giving you the victory
Show him that you believe

Praise him til your blessings come down
Praise him til your situation turns around
You've got to lift up your voice and say Hallelujah Anyway, Hallelujah Anyway

You see him working it out (for you)

So motivational!
House music founding father Frankie Knuckles remixed the track under his Director's Cut moniker:
But for me, its all about the Larse remix. Noir label regular DJ Larse who hails from Germany and whose real name is Lars Brodherr brings forth a melodic smooth remix of the track. And it just feels so powerful, without having to be upbeat. How cool would it be to see this being sang in churches? Ah, the power of Gospel music.

Crookers - Bowser

One of my favorite Italian producers are back with their latest on Nick Catchdub + A-Trak's Fools Gold label with an EP entitled Bowser. After their latest album Dr. Gonzo, they've released some remixes, and EPs. Phra and Bot are well known for their cooky style that somehow just always works, and this EP is no different.  I have to wonder if "Trillex" is some kind of reference to Skrillex (you know, bleeps and all). My favorite cut is the title track.

Klangkarussell - Sonnentanz

I can't tell whether I like this or not. Is it department store music, or is it actually way forward? A little uncomfortable with the fact that the video is coming from Kontor. Anyway, the Austrian duo Tobias Reiser and Adrian Held have upon them a chill house track that will definitely get them onto more Cafe del Mar style compilations...ha!

Dirtybird BBQ Trax

Barclay Crenshaw aka Claude VonStroke's label is on fire these days. With the success of Justin Martin's album, Ghettos & Gardens http://jackhadagroove.blogspot.ca/2012/04/buzz-buzz-bzzz-justin-martin-ghettos.html, the label has been gaining momentum and spearheading the San Fran bass heavy sound, creating a refreshing take on dance music that sets itself apart.
The label has released an EP called BBQ Trax. The Dirtybird crew is notorious for holding summertime parties that involve a BBQ and spinning tracks, so the title is pretty much self explanatory.


The standout track for me comes from 19 year old Justin Jay. Take a listen to the track in its entirety by clicking this link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xvkGEd0Al-k&feature=channel&list=UL

I'm pretty excited because Justin Martin and Claude VonStroke are coming to Montreal. Hopefully I will get to catch them!