The host of one of the world's biggest radio shows, BBC Radio 1's Essential Mix, calls these guys the future stars of 2013. To me, they're simply Jonas Rathsman and Perseus. Two talanted producers breaking their way into the world of dance with the likes of others such as Moon Boots, Isaac Tichauer, and Chris Malinchak on one of the hottest up and coming labels in the scene, French Express.
When describing the work French Express artists have been putting out, Pete Tong claims " [it's] funky, extremely soulful, and to my ears, a breath of fresh air," and it doesn't take long for Jonas and Perseus to dive right into that crisp fresh sound he's talking about.
Things really get grooving early on when they drop into what has been one of my most frequented tracks of the past few months, "If U Got It", by fellow label mate Chris Malinchak. It's that perfect "summer time is almost here" track, but for now i'll just use the excuse that it's always good to feel warm in the winter. A must listen for all the dance floor sluts out there (myself included).
Typically I am against assigning genres to music and trying to describe music in mere words, but sometimes I think the term "Nu-Disco" really does the trick. In this club mix of Round One's "I'm Your Brother" Both of these two pay homage to the deep roots of disco, like the Isley Brother's, and French Express wants to make it known that the soul is still alive. For real tho, my mom knew both of these songs when I was playing them for her recently, and said to me, "this is just like a modern new disco, and i'm loving it!" MOM = Creator of "Nu-Disco"
YOU ROCK MOM!
Later comes the whole Lee Foss "Electricity" / Jeremy Glenn "New Life Perseus Summer of '83 Remix" mix which layers and blends multiple tracks and styles of music really well. Electricity being another top track of mine recently definitely lacks some depth on the low end, and dropping Perseus' magic remix fills out everything and helps mellow the mix out nicely into a small hip hop section before dropping the massive hip-hop-esque groovin' remix Moon Boots did on "Peanut Butter" for Alison Valentine. Out of there we're taken beautifully to an Aaliyah classic track that makes this whole segment a must listen to for those who like the blending of genres, especially disco and hip hop.
After diving through the great Barry White and some more deep cuts, the boys have proven that they indeed deserve to be playing at the big boy's table. As they head towards the end of the set, they drop through two of the labels' most successful hits.
First: Jonas Rathsman's "Since I Don't Have You"
This track highlights Jonas' true sound and if you like what you hear on this one, with that powerful vibe of jungle fever that I know you and I both just caught, you should definitely check out more of what he's got.
Last, they end the set with Malinchak's perfectly constructed romantic ending to any night, "So Good To Me"
The perfect ending to the perfect kind of night, and I was lucky enough to see them end it like this at U Street Music Hall this past December. A great night that consisted of a lot of these great tracks and oh so much more.
Watch out as French Express continues its success and tears into bigger and better things. To me they were already stars in 2012. But I am in agreement that all of these guys are destined for bigger and better things in 2013, and I am excited that we can all dance along in the excitement and eagerness of awaiting the next big thing.