- Smile is a change of direction for Marlon Hoffstadt, a young Berlin-based producer whose early output made its pop aspirations clear. He debuted with the Amy Lyons-assisted You And A Lovestoned Ghost in 2012, and followed that with a string of collaborative EPs, mostly with male singers. Smile is more DJ-friendly, with rougher percussion that sounds unfastened from the grid. And yet the EP's pop-flavoured house is well-groomed to a fault.
Normally, a vocal by Paris Brightledge would be an asset, but his contributions here are overwrought. His delivery on "Smile" is syrupy, and when paired with Hoffstadt's bouncy acid bassline, the whole package sounds overly sweet. It's catchy, for sure—nice in small doses, but less so after too long.
Those problems are less obvious on "Lies." When Brightledge sings, "Every single time / I make up a lie," his vowels dissolve into vapour, a needed restraint he doesn't give "Smile." Kris Wadsworth and Matteo Luis' solo remixes of "Smile" and "Lies" cut the gasps and sighs into dense loops, but neither one strikes the right balance. The textures are dynamic, but the melodic ease of Hoffstadt's originals is lost.
TracklistA1 Smile
A2 Smile (Kris Wadsworth Remix)
B1 Lies
B2 Lies (Matteo Luis Remix)