Review: Pizzico co-founder Billy Bogus (real name Niccolo Bruni) is clearly a fan of Milanese "selector and music producer" Tagliabue, because he's asked the rising star to remix some tracks from his 2018 album "VHS Memories". Tagliabue first tackles "The Precinct", re-imagining it as a throbbing, pulsating voyage into chugging psychedelic disco rich in razor-sharp electronic motifs, druggy arpeggio style bass and mind-altering acid lines. He next turns his attention to "Libyan Bikers", offering a similarly wonky and brain-melting revision that also boasts a touch more muscular funk, before gobbling handfuls of hallucinogens in order to wrap trippy lead lines and skewed electronic motifs around a curious rhythm track on a fine rework of "Spiaggia Cannibale".
Review: Thanks to the release of two stellar productions - the druggy disco single "Glamoflage" on Opilec and the tropically minded "The Caribbean House" on Bear Funk - 2018 has already been a great year for Niccolo Bruni AKA Billy Bogus. Here the Pizzico Records co-founder rounds off a successful 12 months with another tasty offering: an album-length collection of sample-rich original productions on In Flagranti's Codek label. Highlights are naturally plentiful, from the dreamy, slowly building fizz of "Uniporn" and slo-mo, tropical-tinged psychedelic chug of "Enter The Ninja", to the enveloping choral creepiness and doom-laden dub disco bass of "Necula" and the Balearic instrumental synth-pop colour of "Spiaggi Cannibale".
Review: In its' original form, "Gong Bong" - the latest missive from label-hopping producer Billy Bogus - is a sumptuous chunk of melodious nu-disco/dub disco fusion smothered in glistening guitars, swirling synthesized strings and life-affirming synthesizer flourishes. You can dance to it, of course, but it works just as well in those "can't move from the sofa" moments on a Sunday afternoon. The first of two remixes comes from Leng regulars Mushrooms Project, who emphasize the track's dub influences whilst adding warm new chords and their usual heavy dose of blazed late night textures. Arguably best of all, though, is the interpretation by label boss Stevie Kotey, who wisely pushes the duo's wonky acid lines and jazzy guitar solos to the fore.
Review: Billy Bogus debuted his Caribbean House project on Bearfunk last autumn, serving up a sumptuous single ("Gong Bong") that brilliantly joined the dots between dub disco, string-laden Balearica and picturesque nu-disco. This follow-up debut album naturally contains that superb track, plus seven more hard-to-pigeonhole cuts that variously doff a cap to '80s new wave pop dubs ("Night Drive"), distorted, techno-tempo analogue wonkiness ("Lonely Man"), Scandolearic space disco headiness ("Love By Proxy"), flash-fried dub disco ("Jesus Freaks"), Chicago jack-tracks ("Nature Nature") and blissful, delay-laden pop oddities ("Streets Like Noodles"). There's a lot going on throughout, but that's no criticism; it's simply one of those albums where you'll hear something new on each successive listen.
