A nice collection of vocal led electro acoustic tracks by this slightly quirky singer; downtempo meandering swathes of rather pleasant music with a pop sensibility but enough abstraction to retain credibility.
New York’s Monica Lionheart recently released her debut solo album Indian Summer on Nacional Records. It’s a nice collection of vocal led electro acoustic tracks by this slightly quirky singer; downtempo meandering swathes of rather pleasant music with a pop sensibility but enough abstraction to retain credibility. She does have a nice voice, especially if you’re in the mood for someone who ‘deconstructs personal relationships with lyrical honesty and eclectic beats.’ I think that pretty much tells you all you need to know, although it’s possibly more worthy of your time then that part of the press release might suggest, but still, it gives you the rough gist of the album. But this review is not of Monca Lionheart’s album (pleasant as it is), but rather of the just released remixes of the track “Escape Strategy” by Pacha Massive. It happens that Pacha Massive feature the vocal talents of one Monica Lionheart, making this quite the family affair.
Pacha Massive are a New York electro outfit covering Latin flavored styles of dancey, bassy, funky kind of stuff. They’re pretty good as it happens, these two remixes are definitely worth checking out. The first one is a bouncy Latin reworking with washy synth pads, 808 style drums and a hint of a growl bass underpinning the original vocal samples and added Spanish staccato interjections. It’s a good effort, very different from the original, and to my ears a better listen. The second remix is bit more dirty and assertive in its intent, but somehow sounds a bit more formulaic. It has a slightly euro trance feel to it, which despite some of the quite interesting rhythmic elements puts it slightly towards the more predictable side of things. I suppose this is the one that might get played in the busy clubs on a Friday or Saturday night. A shame really because the potential for creating something really amazing is certainly there in the source material. Not that this is a bad remix, it just strikes me it might have been better.
Despite my thoughts on the second remix, this collection, which includes the original to make a three track single is worth checking out. So too is Monica Lionheart’s album Indian Summer for those moments when a gentler sonic ambience is required. Let’s face it, an aural diet consisting solely of the type of eardrum brutality purveyed by the likes of Dead Fader can’t be maintained now can it?
Escape Strategy (Pacha Massive Remixes) is available on Nacional.
