Album Review: Jack listened to the new Captain Flatcap Album

The editor gives his take on the new Captain Flatcap LP

Having recently decided to take a step back from actually writing the blog posts, it may strike some of you as odd to see my name in the byline again. There’s a simple explanation.

A few days ago I received a promo copy of the Captain Flatcap album, which was released today on Scour Records. To say that there were some nerves as I downloaded the files would not be overstating things. I’ve been a big fan of the Flatcap sound since I first discovered their remixes a few years ago. I enjoyed their early releases, including collaborations with Dutty Moonshine. Was this full length album going to live up to the early promise, or would it be one of those that leaves one feeling shortchanged? Full-length albums are few and far between in this scene, so when one disappoints it really feels like a kick in the teeth. It can be hard to sustain originality across that many tracks, especially if the act don’t look to push the boundaries of what vintage remix can be.

I’m very pleased to report that Captain Flatcap have sidestepped this pitfall with considerable flair. They’ve managed to weave together such a wide variety of influences, from ska to hip hop by way of folk and dnb, glitch, electro-house, plus a healthy dose of swing, all the while maintaining a style that is recognisably Catflap.

It perhaps should not come as a surprise that they do this with such apparent ease, given that Chris and Tom Rotherham, the brothers who represent 2/3 of the band, are classically trained musicians. The subtlety of the instrumentation at points is remarkable. In particular Chris’s flute is used to great effect on a  number of occasions to provide a lightness, brightness of sound that is rather uplifting.

That said, if their skill is only signalled by the gentle waving of a silk handkerchief, their love of a jolly good knees-up is announced rather more rowdily, with blaring brass and some very silly, squelchy wubs.

There's also a humourous tone to a number of tracks, with spoken samples taken from the likes of Black Books and Monty Python, which  gives an interesting insight into the chap's viewing habits, as well as providing a few genuinely funny drops.

I genuinely find it difficult to pick an objective favourite out of these tracks. I imagine that traditional electro-swing fans are going to feel most at home with tracks like ‘Coconut Affair’ and ‘Are you Me’, which sounds to my ear very much like some of the Jenova Collective’s work.

But for me the tracks that have been on heaviest rotation for me are the two hip-hop tinged tracks, 'Boom Bap Boxing' and 'Squeaky Clean', both very different, but featuring some of my favourite MCs on the scene: Great Scott and Too Many Ts respectively. I really look forward to 'Squeaky Clean' being released as a single: I imagine that the video will be fun.

But then I’m a sucker for hip hop. I can also see 'Sergei’s Journey' being spun by DJs in about three of Boomtown’s districts, so that implies a certain versatility. For straight out dancefloor stormers the appropriately named 'Filth Wizard', 'Alien Jazz', and 'Are you me?' are the go-to tracks.

I wrote on Facebook that I thought this was an example of what vintage remix can be, and I stand by that: While there’s a definable thread that runs through the work, there’s so much variety in this album that I think it should help to shove the scene out of the creative rut that it was in danger of entering. I can see this some tracks appealing not only to the vintage remix community, but to a wider audience of dance music fans, especially the growing community of Americans who have grown bored with 'EDM' and are beginning to explore the weirder corners of the dance music world.

Go out and buy this album now. Seriously. Do it.

Why are you still here?

Swingrowers return - 'Remote' - Album review

Swingrowers new album ticks all the boxes

Back in February a band for whom I have a serious soft spot - Swingrowers - released their second full-length album, the follow-up to Pronounced Swing'Grow'ers A great deal has changed with the band since those early days. Way back in the mists of 2012 they consisted of just three members - Loredana, the singer; Alessio, the gypsy guitarist, and Roberto, the producer. Now they have strengthened their numbers with two new members, Ciro Pusateri on sax and clarinet, and Davide Rizzuto on violin and keyboards.

New line-up, new album, new approach

One of the main features of the electro-swing sound is the use of vintage samples, indeed, it is often incorporated into definitions of the genre. In recent times I have been noticing more and more artists using the same samples over and over (seriously, one more 'Swing, Swing, Swing' or 'It don't mean a thing' remix and I swear I will cry). The reactions of some producers is to get digging and to unearth some more obscure swing tunes to plunder. The Swingrowers, interestingly, have opted for a completely different approach - to do away with vintage samples altogether. Instead, each track on the album is 100% original material.




Now, I always make a point of listening to any album I am sent before reading the PR blurb, and the first thing to say is that I didn't notice the lack of vintage samples. My first impression was very much positive - The record opens with the first single off Midnight, which was released around Halloween of 2014. It does a very successful job of combining spooky sound effects with a haunting melody and a gentle 100 bpm walking bassline. From this sinister starting point the release takes a sultry tour through various takes on the vintage remix sound. Baby Lone is is pretty sedate as vintage remix goes, and is perhaps more of a showcase for the talents of the band - Lore's seductive tones and gypsy guitar, violin and clarinet solos, with a bit of scratching thrown in for good measure.

New single ramps up the tempo

The second single, That's Right is the third song on the record, and it takes things up a notch or two. Not only is the tempo a bit on the gutsier side, so is Loredana's vocal. Its also the first track to have more of an electronic than organic feel, with programmed synths that must be the audio equivalent of what a slinky falling down a well looks like. I can really see this track getting a dancefloor bouncing. The reason you are reading this review now, as opposed to say, last week, is that the single was released on 6th April, along with the video below. Filmed at the London's amazingly gorgeous Rivoli Ballroom, its a feast for both eyes and ears.





As the album progresses Stay Swing uses a driving bassline to get the feet tapping and to provide a foil for further solos from the excellent musicians in the line up. In typical jazz style there is something of a call and response motif, with one instrument posing a question and another providing the answer. There's also a fabulous piano riff and a definite hint of Parov Stelar to the sound. One thing that really stands out on this album is the musicianship, something which really comes to the fore in Frank with a dark piano rhythm that helps to emphasise the pumping beat, and violin twiddles (technical term) that are so reminiscent of Stephane Grappelli that I initially believed them to be samples of that virtuoso's recordings.

Too Many Reinhardts

One of the most interesting tracks on the album is the collaborations with London's own rappers du jour Too Many T's. If you have read this blog before you will certainly have come across their name. Django's blend of relaxed hip-hop beats, virtuoso gypsy guitar and witty lyricism tells the story of the imagined sibling rivalry between Django and his brother DiAngelo, ending, inevitably in a 'soundclash to the musical death' and a 'post-musical bloodbath' which sees both brothers losing their hands. Always be nice to your brothers, kids.





The track that most makes me want to sing along is Chiovi, which is, incidentally, the only track on the album on which Lore sings in her native Italian. I do think it comes across that she is more comfortable singing in Italian rather than English, and I think I would probably prefer if they stuck to Italian, though in this international scene I can understand why they have chosen to include so many English lyrics. Its long enough ago that I completed my degree in Italian that I can't really translate for you, but the song's house-y beat, bright horns and Lore's joyous-sounding vocal make this one a stand-out track for me.

Swingrowers mix it up

From here on the party tunes come thick and fast: Breakout's
bassy brass and dark, bubbly synths, noodly (technical term) sax solos are pretty infectious; Enjoy the moment seems to reference Ray Charles's famous Hit the road Jack! and makes it hard not to follow the instruction in the title. The most infectious track is certainly Fancy, which combines the oompah rhythm of a Balkan brass section with a heady basskick, bright melodies and a pretty vocal to make a real head-nodder.

Sexy Swing

The final track of the album, Why? takes things into the realms of brushed cymbals, melancholia and a bluesy love song, which seems to round off the offering nicely. Swingrowers have, with this album, cemented their position as one of the most interesting and innovative electro-swing groups on the scene at the moment. The whole album is a fascinating exploration of the various meanings of the ever evolving electro-swing genre. It might not be rammed full of dancefloor stompers, but it is a great listen and many of the tracks have excellent remix potential, as evidenced by the fabulous remixes from Swing Republic and Jamie Berry that make up the rest of the That's Right EP.








The label describe this record as a 'game changer'. I'm not sure that I would go that far, but what it does do is show that the scene need not be reliant on sampling if the quality of the musicianship is good enough, and will surely encourage other artists to consider taking the same route.

Electric Empire Escapade - Correspondents single launch party - preview

Over the last few weeks I have been getting increasingly excited about an event that will take place on 8th February at the Bussey Building in Peckham. The guys behind the monthly electro-swing night Electric Empire, at the Amersham Arms, have teamed up with Madame Electrifie to create the Electric Empire Escapade. The line-up is just staggering, with some of the very best DJs and live acts on the UK scene, as you can see from the flyer.


This promises to be a proper, foot-stomping, tub-thumping rave - the Correspondents put on one hell of a show, and with several of the grimiest, bassiest, and bangingest (inventing words is fun) acts also on the bill I anticipate having to be dragged home. I am especially excited by the prospect of the back-to-back set from The McMash Clan and Dutty Moonshine - they should smash the place to pieces.

According to Ed Higgins, one of the forces behind the event, the idea was sown for a jamboree on this scale following the success of the Electric Empire events. He told me that "from the very beginning it has been all about pushing best acts in the growing UK scene and building relationships with these producers/DJ's. The big party at the Bussey Building, is the result of all these other successful parties throughout the year amalgamated into one."

He went on to say  "Electric Empire Escapade is all about the party. Having good times, listening to fresh exciting music that makes you wanna dance. So many club nights in any genre of music are all to much about the attitude and the image and have forgotten what its all about, good toe tapping, leg swinging music!!
Electric Empire Escapade was created to help change this."

Most of the performers have been mentioned on this blog, and you will find examples of their music on other posts - but here is a little sample of what to expect from Dutty Moonshine... as Tim Westwood would say "Nothing but BIG things."

A couple of weeks ago, on his weekly Friday morning  Kane FM show, 'That Swing Thing', Captain Flatcap announced the final name on the lineup... Odjbox. I mean, really! It's just silly. 

Check out the cloudcast above for his full show - a good little warm up. Tickets are selling fast, and will continue to do so! (I got four this morning) Join the Facebook page for the event for further updates, and buy tickets here. 

If you are there, and see a mustachioed, trilby-ed bloke thrashing the dancefloor, its me - come and say hi!

ttfn

Jack