soleil rare 6 - sippin.

You didn't expect it, well, here it is : the first "Soleil rare" club selection. 

Kavinsky - Testarossa Autodrive. 

In the world of Kavinsky, cars are a leitmotiv. And the track "Testarossa Autodrive" being the first on his debut, you can hardly miss this fact. Released in 2006, "Teddy Boy" is a highly slept-on EP of French electro. But it spread light on his work, reminescent of the 1980's spirit ; Kavinsky's shit is a mix of "K-2000", "Back To The Future", "Miami Vice" and such. 

Now linked to the best of the French scene thanks to his connection to Ed Banger, Kavinsky frequently offers dope mixes in clubs, with his unique i don't give a fuck style.

But what about "Testarossa Autodrive" ? Oh yeah... it's dope, simple as that. Those crazy layered synths became Kav's business card. Several producers and DJ's made remixes of this hit, such as Mr. Oizo and SebastiAn. And last but not least, don't miss the video.

A-Trak - Say Whoa.

Having talked of Ed Banger, it was normal to talk about Kitsuné, the French rival alter ego label which released "Say Whoa", by ex-scratch-wonderkid-turned-major-actor-of-the-club-scene A-Trak, as a 12" single. 

In just a few years, A-Trak had such an impact on the club scene that he's now considered a veteran... but what a career, at just 29. Several times DMC-ITF-Vestax world champion as a kid, partner of the very best in the scratching game (Craze, Q-Bert etc.), Kanye West's touring DJ, founder of the Fool's Gold label, incredible remixer, tireless clubber, one half of insane house duo Duck Sauce alongside the legendary Armand Van Helden, etc etc etc, A-Trak's resume is just too long to get going.

Released in 2008, "Say Who" acted as A-Trak's kick in the door. Well, now he owns the door. And the whole house too. Don't miss him at your local club.

Simian Mobile Disco ft. Chris Keating - Audacity Of Huge

Simian Mobile Disco kinda revived the British electro scene, with their elegant house sound, and their use of vocals. They gained fame in the game with numerous remixes and a few singles. The FabricLive series even surfed on the wave by having the boys of Simian hosting their #41 episode. 

After a first album, called "Attack Decay Sustain Release", Simian Mobile Disco's sophomore album, "Temporary Pleasure", was released in 2009. 

On "Audacity Of Huge", the second single from this album, the vocals are brought by Chris Keating of Yeasayer, an American band of psych pop. Almost girly, maybe not danceable, but a good mood setter.

MSTRKRFT - Street Justice. 

We're going a rougher road with MSTRKRFT (damn, it's a torture to write their name). Another Canadian act in this selection, also widely known for their remixing skills... their list of remixes is just too extended but they did everyone from Kelis to Armand Van Helden, through Bloc Party and Usher, to name just a few.

Using twisted bass sounds as the main core of the track, with fast hi-hats and a heady sentence, "Street Justice" served nicely as a single for the duo's debut "The Looks". The head-nodder of this set.

Sébastien Léger -P.Y.T. 

Gotta love the cover. Gotta love the MJ reference. Gotta love Sébastien Léger. 

Of course, sampling Michael Jackson and calling the track "P.Y.T." is too simple. But, what the hell... consider it a remix if you want, it sounds like a new track using a sample. The limit in electronic music is often so thin. 

This track was featured on Sébastien Léger's album "King Size", released in 2002. Compared to the current scene personified by the Ed Banger crew, Sébastien Léger's sound has deeper influences in techno, using fast hard beats. But this track sounds more like a Bob Sinclar early hit ; it reminds of the "Africanism" spirit. A good spirit.

DJ Mehdi - Pocket Piano (Brodinski Remix).

Another French guy. Once again from the Ed Banger catalog. And again with a diverse background. Indeed, Mehdi wasn't born into electronic sounds, he started as a hip hop DJ with teenage band Idéal J. He developed incredible skills as a rap producer and beatmaker, crafting beats for his group as well as for the best actors of the French rap scene. Then, suddenly, he turned himself into a club DJ and a electro composer. Well, not so suddenly if you listen to his work as The Cambridge Circus and with Cassius... but enough of the history lesson. 

Brodinski, remixer of "Pocket Piano", is a collaborator of Ed Banger, but is not part of the label. He instead works with Yuksek, another interesting side act of the French scene. Just like in the previous track of this selection, there's an "Africanism" mood on this track. I guess Bob Sinclar paved the way before doing irrelevant music...

Jaydee - Plastic Dreams (Laidback Luke Bootleg).

Au commencement était "Plastic Dreams"... I remember confusing Jaydee for Jay Dee back in the days. An honest mistake, because I aknowledged the existence of the Dutch house producer before I realized Jay Dee was responsible for so many excellent rap songs. 

Released in 1993, "Plastic Dreams" set the standard for the house scene : heady organs, loud bass... David Morales, MAW, Armand Van Helden, so many guys got inspiration from this unique song. Yea, those drums you hear in "U Don't Know Me", they come from "Plastic Dreams".

It's only normal that another Dutch guy, Laidback Luke, remixed "Plastic Dreams" in the more recent years. This one being a bootleg, it's very hard to get info about Luke's version, and you may only find it as a mp3 on the internet. Luke gave the original a modern lifting, with more echo, claps, distortion, but kept the basic elements of the original. Clubbish indeed. 

TTC - Dans Le Club (Instrumentale Version). 

A few years ago, electro rap wasn't the obvious path to get fame. Far from it. So TTC went the hard long road of releasing underground records until one day, they caught the ear of the guys of Big Dada. And then, the group entered into a new dimension. A dimension of excentricity. Lead by the charismatic (but bad rappers, you have to admit) Cuizinier and Teki Latex, the band capitalized on originality and anti-conformism. So much that, as always, it seems that they fell into their own game. 

The French lyrics of the vocal version of "Dans Le Club" are pretty scandalous, but hilarious if you are able to understand TTC's humour. So, here is the instrumental version, produced by the one and only Para One, a genius in his own genre. Fully enjoyable in your car, for example. Drive slow homey.

David Guetta ft. Kelly Rowland - When Love Takes Over.

It would be too simple to hate on David Guetta. But you have to admit he knows how to rock a crowd. Sure, I hear all the rumours... ghost producing for example. Well, I could give a damn. But I don't, because I heard live mixes in which David delivered some real intensity, getting deep into electro and avoiding his own hits and all the popish sounds. 

Now, I confess I grew tired of the Guetta formula, plain and simple. But it applies to the very recent songs. This album, "One Love", was pretty consistent. Strangely, I found the worst tracks to be the Black Eyed Peas collaborations. "When Loves Takes Over" lifted the album to the top of the charts, thanks to Kelly Rowland, who also revealed herself as another crowd rocker after the collapse of Destiny's Child. It might be the last time I select a Guetta's track for "Soleil rare", but whatever...