Sammy Virji – Never Let You Go (Hamdi Edit) (2021)

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Racine -> Chicago -> London -> Brighton. Here we have layers of a dancefloor onion. UK dubstep producer Hamdi left his mark in 2021 with his throwback edit of DJ Sammy Virji’s ‘Never Let You Go’, which itself is inspired by speed garage bomb ‘Ripgroove’. With that song’s release in 1997, London duo Double 99 started the clubland rinsing of the vocal sample of Chicago DJ Kelly G’s Bump-N-Go mix of Tina Moore’s ‘Never Gonna Let You Go’. The original song is a classic a R&B groove from the Wisconsin-born singer.

Arlo Parks – Too Good (2021)

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Good morning. The uplifting ‘Too Good’ features on Arlo Parks’ celebrated debut LP Collapsed in Sunbeams. A 2021 reboot of 1990s neo-soul. For those that like hear to more, the single was given a subsequent, hypnotic remix by Unknown Mortal Orchestra. Have a great week.

Benny Sings ‎- Sunny Afternoon (2021)

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Dutch singer Tim van Berkestijn is aka Benny Sings. He took the stage name while playing bass with hip-hop group Abstract Dialect in the late 1990s, but he’s been going solo for the last 20 years. In 2021, he released his eighth studio album Music, and it features the lovely, breezy ‘Sunny Afternoon’. Here’s hoping.

Rampa, Adam Port, &Me feat. Sofie Royer – Discoteca (2021)

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The German collaboration and label Keinemusik released an eclectic triple LP of their work in 2021. Send Return features the call-to-dance ‘Discoteca’. Rampa, Adam Port, &Me recruit the Austrian-Iranian singer Sofia Royer to provide the whispering tones for those that like to close your eyes and move.

Tyler, The Creator – SWEET / I THOUGHT YOU WANTED TO DANCE (2021)

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I appreciate Tyler, The Creator for his latitude. Take the extended ‘SWEET / I THOUGHT YOU WANTED TO DANCE ‘ off last year’s album Call Me If You Get Lost. It could not be further removed from his breakout single ‘Yonkers’. A decade had passed and his experimentation showed no sign of abating. Have a great weekend.

Southern Shores – Fora (2021)

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Apologies, a couple of days’ holiday, a full sun and I’m all over the place. Making up for a missing post today/tomorrow. As Southern Shores, Jamie Townsend and Ben Dalton create “sonic oases” and the ambient single ‘Fora’ has a touch of The Avalanches about it, which means a big tick from me. Thanks for the recommendation PB.

Parquet Courts – Walking At A Downtown Pace (2021)

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Good morning. Love this – Parquet Courts do Primal Scream. ‘Walking at a Downtown Pace’ features on the Brooklyn-based band’s 2021 album Sympathy For Life. Have a great week.

Sam Fender – Seventeen Going Under (2021)

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The life-affirming title track off Sam Fender’s second studio album Seventeen Going Under chronicles his life at 17 when his mother was taken ill, had to give up work and suffered depression. Fender has recalled: “That’s when my rose-tinted glasses fell off”. It’s real and served as the lead single.

Yves Tumor – Echolalia (2023)

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Sean Bowie, best known as Yves Tumor, is hard to pigeonhole. In January, the single ‘Echolalia’ announced his forthcoming album Praise A Lord Who Chews But Which Does Not Consume. If its post-punk groove is a sign of things to come, it’s welcome. Have a great week.

The Antlers – Green To Gold (2021)

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In 2021, Brooklyn-based The Antlers returned with their first new material in six/seven years. The title track of their LP Green To Gold is some grown-up post rock about the changing seasons – and growing up.

Current Joys – American Honey (2021)

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Towards the end of last winter, I spent quite a bit of time listening to Nick Rattigan’s Current Joys. A new winter and and ‘American Honey’ has popped up on my playlist. I’m reminded of how much I enjoyed his 2021 album Voyager. I think this song is his best to date. The instrumentation reminds be a lot of Jim O’Rourke-era Wilco.

Hand Habits – Aquamarine (2021)

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Having been blooded as a studio musician with The War on Drugs, Weyes Blood, William Tyler and Kevin Morby, among others, Meg Duffy’s own project Hand Habits has been building confidence. The indie pop of ‘Aquamarine’ features on his 2021 album Fun House. Duffy lives in Los Angeles. Omaha-based label Saddle Creek released the album.

Hiatus Kaiyote – Red Room (2021)

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As they had done with ‘Get Sun‘, future soulsters Hiatus Kaiyote released ‘Red Room’ as an an advanced single off last year’s debut album Mood Valiant. Singer Nai Palm explained that the red room is “a magic moment in my everyday. It’s the celebration of the sanctuary of having a nest or a home. Something I value deeply from having been uprooted my whole childhood”. Have a great weekend folks.

Mall Grab – Love Reigns (2021)

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Originally hailing from New South Wales, Jordon Alexander (a.k.a. Mall Grab) has since relocated to London. ‘Love Reigns’ demonstrated his take on the London dance and festival scene in the summer of 2021. Despite the contemporary setting, it’s got a big nod to 1990s piano house. Its chorus “Love reign down on me” will feature on his upcoming, debut album What I Breathe released via his own Looking For Trouble label.

Wet Leg – Chaise Longue (2021)

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There is something very 1990s about the indie dance in Wet Leg’s ‘Chaise Longue’. Sonic Youth comes to mind. Released last summer, it served as the lead single off the English duo’s self-titled debut album; courtesy of Domino Records. The song was written by vocalist Rhian Teasdale while sitting on a chaise longue owned by guitarist Hester Chambers’ grandfather.