OM Records / Salted Music
San Francisco house artist Miguel Migs has cornered the market when it comes to soulful, vocal driven house over the past decade and this, his third long player has him continuing unashamed working within a genre so outdated that not even Sophie Ellis Bextor makes it anymore, obviously a good thing.
It takes a precocious talent to bring together vocalists as dispararate as soul singer Meshell Ndegeocello, dancehall legend Half Pint and Brazlian bossa nova artist Bebel Gilberto to make a cohesive flowing album but he he achieves it with some style. Migs’ roots in reggae is also apparent throughout the album through the reggae drum rolls and heavy basslines throughout the album to featured vocalists such as Capelton and Freddie Mcgregor on tracks such as ‘They don’t know’. Mig’s is just as adept at uplifting disco as ‘Everybody‘ shows, featuring the smooth vocals of disco diva Evelyn ‘Champagne’ King, the jazzy basslines and crisp house beats could soundtrack a night out at Studio 54 in its pomp minus the possibility of being turned away at the door for not being attractive enough.
With a taste for analogue sounds being so prevalent in current electronic music (see John Tejada’s ‘Parabolas’album and the Poker Flat compilation ‘Forward to the past’, an album so retro each track was initially recorded onto tape and then digitised for that muffled cassette sound), Mig’s jazzy basslines and afro tinged house sound like it was recorded in a totally different era, albeit one more recent than the influences of current post acid house artists such as Boys Noize and Siriusimo, this is sensible house music tailored to home listening rather than tearing up dancefloors and no matter how archaic that may seem, there’s no doubting the sheer abundance of quality on offer here.
Clashmusic.com review by Chris Todd
