la decadanse: 20 / 20

20 / 20
26 February 2009

Photo courtesy of Feral Percy on Flickr

Silver City - Shiver (Ewan Pearson's Bari Girl Remix)

Getting into the overall umbrella of dance music when you don't have the slightest clue where to start and nobody to guide you along the way is difficult enough. In the context of the digital age, it's even worse trying to navigate through a lot of faux music journalism. Sometimes it's just easier to go to the source. In the earliest incarnations of Ewan Pearson's "Enthusiasm" page, there were lists upon lists of recommended tracks that helped wipe the confusion off my face. Straight forward, no pretense, just good music. These were the things that made Pearson such an excellent virtual guide, an even better DJ and one of my all time favorite producers.

When Pearson jokingly ordained himself 2008's Supreme Overlord of Dance and wrote a list of pretty hilarious albeit brilliant decrees, it was evident that he was making an argument for quality and authenticity:

1. All producers will take a vow of chastity for the first half of the year. Have six months off. Learn to paint or to knit. Take up bird watching. Do some voluntary work in an old people’s home. Make yourselves useful.

2. Further to decree 1, all producers will count the number of remixes completed and records released in 2007 and release a third as many in 2008. Work harder than you did last year, but throw away everything you think is not genuinely going to add something to the world.

3. No releases will be allowed that are generated entirely by laptop or plug-in. All records should contain at least one certified example of someone hitting something real with a stick, yelling into a microphone, wrapping strings around an object and strumming them. That kind of thing. Documentary proof, photos etc, will be required.

I first saw 2020 Soundsystem live in New York (coincidentally alongside Pearson) not too long ago and I was pretty taken aback by seeing a stage crowded with artists. I know it sounds silly but when you're accustomed to just watching some semi-masturbatory, solo knob tweaking and laptop button pushing, seeing someone behind a drum kit, a bassist slouched over his instrument and a vocalist on the mic (with the aforementioned knob tweaker) suddenly becomes something mind blowing.

Prior to the set I had no idea Silver City was actually a part of 2020 Soundsystem until I heard that all too familiar, gorgeous but haunting vocal from "Shiver". Fernando Pulichino and Julian Sanza, the native Argentinians behind the Silver City moniker, began their careers in 1999 as Ciudad Feliz before moving to London in 2002 where they landed a deal with 2020 Vision Recordings (Leeds based masters of visual and audial acuity) and released their first 12", "Blah Blah Blah". They were then swept up by the Soundsystem crew alongside 2020 Vision label owners and DJs Ralph Lawson and Dubble D (Danny Ward). Granted "Shiver" and Pearson's remix were a 2005 release, but such a beautiful piece of soul-stirring euphoria that twinkles and dazzles the way that this does doesn't deserve to be shelved.

Silver City - Polytechnics

The last I'd heard of Silver City, they had released the electro-funky Polytechnics EP on UK label Deep Freeze Recordings in July of 2008 which also features "Victoria Jam" and an edit of "Pendulo" by the highly esteemed Pete Herbert. Herbert records under the name LSB and remixed Runaway's "Brooklyn Club Jam" among others and also goes by Reverso 68 on Belgian label Eskimo Recordings. This is Silver City's second release on DF, the first being 2006's "Dubby" EP.

Posted by La Decadanse @ 01:18 | |