Wednesday 5 March 2014

TOUCH SENSITIVE – SLOWMENTS

I've been thinking about this song ever since it arrived in my inbox. I didn't write about it straight away because 2013's timeless-incredible track from Touch Sensitive, the indomitable and eternal 'Pizza Guy', was just so good that I was worried the next instalment from this Future Classic-dwelling Australian producer just wouldn't match up. With that worry firmly locked in my mind last night, I finally steeled myself: it was on the cusp of sleep that I resolved, tomorrow – today – I would write about Touch Sensitive's new track, 'Slowments'.

The song itself is a remix, essentially – or perhaps more correctly, a re-envisioning – of Art of Noise's bizarre and sensual 1985 track 'Moments In Love' (also responsible for the Prince-covered 1988 hit, 'Kiss'), yet when the slow arpeggio of synth bips rippled through the air, my first thought was of the 'Prelude' from Final Fantasy VII, and if that makes you angry, or you think I'm stupid, I'm really sorry. Just listen to the song and forget I said anything.

Turning the original vocals into high-register piercings of soul-moving sound, Touch Sensitive – real name Michael Di Francesco – lays on controlled torrents of warm, flowing bass, enough to rumble your very blood, whilst organising jumbled metallic hits to reverb their way through the faraway romance of the song. It's a perfect match of old and new – modern drum sounds clapping and thudding out a mid-tempo, extremely danceable rhythm; glittering old synths like vintage jewellery raining from the sky. At heart, it's a retelling of 80s synthpop and it's very pretty.

But— is it better than 'Pizza Guy'? Well, in my opinion, no. I say this because I have been and still am obsessed with that track. It's one of my go-to songs. But 'Slowments' is different in style, eschewing the bold and bright Drive inspired sounds of last year for something subtler, and maybe prettier; something that, by description, pays homage to something else (and as such it's difficult to compare to the originality of 'Pizza Guy'). I like it, I like it a lot, but I am yearning for something that is going to jolt my heart with such energy that I can't help but listen to it on repeat for days on end – perhaps that's what's to come.

Get this for free right here (clickety-click-click).



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