Nicholas - Bonus Beats Volume 1

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  • The disco sample is to Detroit house music as the Ford Mustang is to the Motor City's auto industry: both are elemental and never quite go out of style. The same qualities that make perennial hits out of 20-year-old cuts like Moodymann's "Shades Of Jae" and Terrence Parker's "Your Love" make the deceptively simple MPC chop they used seem like a good trick to mimic. Most of the time it's not—beyond the iffy cultural appropriations, it's nearly impossible to top the '90s cuts made by KDJ, Theo Parrish, Norm Talley and others. On his latest release, Italian producer Nicholas beats the odds, moving away from the swinging East Coast-style of his early releases toward a Midwestern sound that passes the taste test. Nicholas's deft technique comes from expertly utilizing his record collection. Beyond the Nu Groove edits he's best known for, he audaciously sampled MFSB's "Love Is The Message" and Nervous diva Kim English in the past. For Bonus Beats Volume 1 opener "Hot Nights," he makes like Norma Jean Bell with a Minnie Riperton record, snatching a cloying vocal and shaking things up with hand percussion, Rhodes flourishes and sax solos. The Rhodes acrobatics continue on "ATMO," a roller that adds to the convivial vibe with sounds of a house party in full swing. It's a classic tactic used on primary dance floor sources like Marvin Gaye's "Got To Get It On." The B-side is more straightforward. "Together Beats" sounds like Guidance Records-style filter house. Once again, the hands-in-the-air moment comes courtesy of another record, some lush disco breakdown replete with strings, horns and guitar. In a 2013 Teshno interview, Nicholas said, "I try to figure out different ways to give [my productions] a dirtier edge. For instance, I can use some samples from old records, like some disco beat taken from something in my collection. I think it gives more soul and warmth to the music. That’s why I do it, it's not for bare nostalgia." Per the tossed-off title, Bonus Beats Volume 1 doesn't represent an expansive artistic statement, but is instead four fun party tracks fitting into a storied tradition. It might be Nicholas's most successful attempt at capturing the magic of his dusty stacks.
  • Tracklist
      A1 Hot Nights A2 ATMO B1 Together Beats B2 Something To Believe
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