- When you get down to it, what's the real difference between house and disco? The latest release from Detroit underground hero Andrés (also known as DJ Dez), and the debut of his new label La Vida, openly flirts with both and comes out triumphant and universal in the process.
"Drama Around the Corner" is a sample-heavy groover based around a forceful but graceful drum loop, as soulful vocals and strings emerge from vinyl crackle, rickety but smooth all at once. Meanwhile, "Jazz Dance" lives up to its name with a roaming acoustic bassline that recalls the virtuosic work of someone like Paul Chambers as it darts around underneath a cool-blue Rhodes melody.
But it's the title track—which revs things up considerably—that deserves the attention here. Slightly inescapable in 2012 so far and for good reason, "New For U" has a crunchy, tape-worn groove that hobbles with a gravelly warble that brings to mind the same warm, fuzzy feelings as vintage Larry Levan mixes. The suave keys only further drive it into territory that you might have found on Salsoul in the late '70s. The instantly indelible part is the sterling strings, however, which swoop in flamboyantly, swinging and swaying in full-on disco bliss. Skewed halfway between a bygone era and an ideal present and rendered with enviable ease, "New For U" is simply timeless no matter what you want to call it.
Tracklist A1 New For U
A2 Drama Around The Corner
B Jazz Dance