- The hand-stamped cover art gives you a pretty good idea of the vibe on Loods and Mall Grab's latest collaboration on Steel City Dance Discs. In messy bright-green ink, you're greeted by the fun-loving anthropomorphic dog Goofy, who seems to be in the process of chomping a pill (maybe a Quaalude, as suggested by the catalogue number, QUAALUDES001). Drug references aside, the visual speaks to the nature of Steel City Dance Discs, the label run by Mall Grab and his childhood Aussie pals Jarred Kennedy and Jackson Fitzsimmons. They release loopy, retro-tinged bangers that remind us that raves are about having fun.
Primed for summer dance floors, the EP begins with the ecstatic disco-house track "Love Is Real." It samples "I Owe You One" by Shalamar, a schmaltzy '70s disco group masterminded by two Soul Train execs who hoped to milk disco's dwindling moments. It's not surprising the two producers turned to Shalamar, a band that never took themselves too seriously, for inspiration. After the brief, filiterd intro, a melange of cheery horns, thumping lo-fi kicks and chopped vocal samples chug along for nearly ten minutes. Aside from a few muted passages, there's not a lot to the track, but crafty DJs could use the EQ and filters to keep crowds moving.
"Sweetness" turns to the disco diva Stephanie Mills' oft-sampled "What Cha Gonna Do With My Lovin'" for a more restrained ten-minute track. It lacks the punch of its predecessor but it's equally as clever and bright. Like the many Steel City Dance Discs records that sample lovingly cheesy hits, Love Is Real doesn't try too hard. It's about feeling, and a good one at that.
TracklistA Love Is Real
B Sweetness