SECURE SHOPPING
George FitzGerald will round off a fantastic year with a third single on Hotflush Recordings.
Full details have emerged of the first release from the newly minted ManMakeMusic label, which sees Hotflush and Aus talent George FitzGerald at the helm.
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If you’re going to re-launch a label, it always helps if your comeback release is a bit good. And in Do It Yourself by Parisian deep houser Sammy Brawther, Secretsundaze has found a peach. Those with a discerning ear for high calibre deep house have long held him in high regard and his track record is impressive, with releases on Chicago imprint Balance, an offshoot of the great Prescription Records, already under the belt. His recent admission that he was the man behind the Paris Underground Trax alias that caused such a stir last year with a 12″ on My Love Is Underground (turned out he co-runs the label too) filled the small gap in his discography like a jigsaw piece. But even taking into account his work for MLIU, the two original tracks on this EP are undoubtedly a step up.
Secretsundaze dons Giles Smith and James Priestly are known admirers of Brawther, having snapped him up to their DJ booking agency some time ago. It should perhaps also be noted at this juncture that the Frenchman is something of a protégé of Chez Damier. It’s no surprise, then, that the title track bears some of the hallmarks of Damier’s early 90s productions – and that of the aforementioned Prescription imprint that Damier launched with Ron Trent in 1993. To these ears, “Do It Yourself” sounds like it was inspired by a combination of Chuggles “Thank You” (a Prescription Records classic) and Chez & Trent’s “Morning Factory”. Certainly, it has a similar aesthetic – all bumpin’ low end, echo-laden vocal samples, dubby Chicagoan percussion and hypnotic 90s organ riffage. It sounds irresistibly fresh, despite the classic elements on show – a reflection of Brawther’s developing production skills.
“Spaceman Funk” is almost as impressive, and sounds like “Can You Feel It” remade for the 21st century. It’s a touch more jackin’ in the beat department, but the bassline is just as bumpin’ as the A. The addition of Mr Fingers-ish chords lifts it to a whole new level. The package is completed by a superb re-rub of “Spaceman Funk” by George FitzGerald, a young producer who looks destined to fulfill the promise shown on early singles “The Let Down” and “Don’t You”. Rolling on broken house beats, stunning vocal edits, sinewy strings and positive melodies, it rounds off an unmissable EP.
Matt Anniss
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As mentioned in an interview with Juno Plus earlier this year, Will Saul’s Aus imprint continue their efforts to build on a strong 2010, with full details emerging of a new EP from George FitzGerald.
London types James Priestly and Giles Smith will celebrate 10 years of secretsundaze by re-launching the record label wing of their empire, kicking off with a 12″ from Parisian house producer Brawther.
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One part of the force behind East London party starters, Man Make Music, George FitzGerald (yes that’s a capital G in there), brings us a fantastic offering on Scuba’s Hotflush Two imprint. Moving swiftly on from “Don’t Stay”, his debut release on Joy Orbison’s Doldrums label earlier this year, FitzGerald finds himself increasingly on the territory laid out by his forefathers – Orbison included – a swirling expanse where garage, dubstep and a whole other range of hints and tones converge to form a blur of blissed out electronic beauty.
That’s not to say that FitzGerald is just a Joy Orb copycat. He’s not. He is, however, hotly tipped for 2010, and it’s no wonder why. “The Let Down” is a delicious, delicately structured piece, with slowly building vocal sampling blended into light, percussive beats and chiming keys, falling gently into a more ambient piece of gorgeously flowing, rhythmic beats, tripping breaks and rippling harmonies. Continuing in a similar vein for the flipside, “Weakness”, FitzG opens with a softly fuzzing intro, replete with shimmering synths and UK garage vibes in plentiful, yet understated existence. Executed with the prowess of a fully-fledged member of the Hotflush contingent, George FitzGerald lives up to all the hype here. And long may he prosper.
Review: Belinda Rowse
Dubstep starlet George FitzGerald will join the coveted Hotflush team with a debut two track EP to be released this month.
Another year is over – perfect time, then, to not only reflect on the year that was but look ahead to what the future holds. We’ve compiled a short list of the acts we think are primed to break through in 2010 – there’s the usual assortment of sickeningly talented twenty somethings, plus an old hat or two to keep it interesting.
