2020 is underway and labels are getting back to their offices to release new music. Revealed Recordings has announced a rebrand but ended up shooting itself in the foot. Protocol returned to its roots but no one started off the year as strong as Loca Recordings with their massive collaboration which we covered over the weekend. As always, we’ll be compiling a short recap of notable tracks that we didn’t have time to cover during the previous week. We hope you enjoy our selection and if you have any tracks you’d like to see here, please feel free to post your suggestions in the comments.

Tom Reev – Motown

[soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/736457257″ params=”color=#ff5500&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false&show_teaser=true” width=”100%” height=”130″ iframe=”true” /]

It’s sad to see us starting the year with the retirement of Tom Reev. A prevalent name among Future House labels on Soundcloud dating back to the genre’s rise to prominent in 2016 and it’s sad to see him leave before his career took off into the major leagues. While his tracks also never quite reached the levels of mixing and mastering required to advance, his ideas and melodies were still extraordinary. For the track, “Motown” is a fitting departure which stayed true to form. Not his best work but at least he closed this chapter of his life while he moves on to continue his studies. We truly wish him the best.

81/100

PULLER & Blanee & WYKO – Promises

[soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/736781344″ params=”color=#ff5500&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false&show_teaser=true” width=”100%” height=”130″ iframe=”true” /]

The owner of Bangerang Network is back with new music to start off the new year alongside the omnipresent future house producer, Blanee, and versatile Portuguese producer, WYKO. The bangarang promotion network has been the subject of scrutiny for their questionable results which are sometimes aided by bots, so hopefully PULLER will ring in the new year with organic results. The song itself is really pleasant with Blanee’s touch on the second breakdown and WYKO’s hard hitting future house percussion set. The drop melody has a wonderfully wide range and excellent instrumentation which makes it a must-have for me. Other than Blanee’s festival section, the breakdowns are rather generic with typical instrumentals and a sample pack vocal. All-in-all, a promising start for the year for Puller & co if they can keep their nose clean.

83/100

Kenneth G & Sheezan – Body Count

[soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/735746821″ params=”color=#ff5500&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false&show_teaser=true” width=”100%” height=”130″ iframe=”true” /]

I might have mentioned this in a previous recap, but the current Kenneth G is nothing like the old one behind classics like “Kung Fu,” “Omen,” or “Bonzai.” This latest one with one of MOTi’s other hencemen, Sheezan is an unfortunate start to 2020 for Zero Cool. There isn’t a single original element to “Body Count” with a canned sample pack vocal and generic future house sounds for the drop. When I saw MOTi giving his personal video for the end of 2019, I had hopes that he’d add a bit more character into his label but alas that doesn’t seem to be the case.

21/100

Conor Ross – Dance

[soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/737880964″ params=”color=#ff5500&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false&show_teaser=true” width=”100%” height=”130″ iframe=”true” /]

There’s no denying that Conor Ross is on his way up to the top with a recent collab and music video with Jonas Aden as well as a release on Mixmash Bold. This particular track has been played on his demo stream and a few other prominent radio shows prior to release, ensuring it had sufficient hype leading up to Friday. According to Future House Music, Conor Ross is the youngest to release on the label at sixteen years old. The track itself sounds like if Julian Jordan & Jonas Aden had a collaboration but in the freshest way possible. I don’t necessarily ascribe to the idea that the first drop needed that extra eight measures after the standard sixteen. Overall, the track has a lot going for it but one wonders why it wasn’t accepted by Hexagon or higher. Either way, it’s a diverse, fresh track with a lot to offer future house and electro fans.

85/100

Jordan Jay & Mo Falk – Back In Time

[soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/737880964″ params=”color=#ff5500&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false&show_teaser=true” width=”100%” height=”130″ iframe=”true” /]

Ignoring the horrendous 2020 debut for Hex Generation, Jordan Jay & Mo Falk kick off Hexagon Main’s releases for the year with a strong offering that doesn’t stray too far from the norm for the label. The vocoder work In the first break was very strong but the first drop was a bit of a letdown with its standard chromatic elements and Jordan Jay fills. Given Mo Falk’s excellent remix of “Back In Time” from Siks, you’d think they’d go for more original sounds instead of stealing from Retrovision’s playbook. The second break would normally have been impressive if it hadn’t already been done in “We Like To Party,” If it weren’t for Retrovision, this would have been an impressive blend between future house and electro, but as it stands it seems like another ripoff. Jordan Jay has been starting to stack a pile of ripoffs including his remix of “We Got That Cool” which blatantly copies Siks, “All I Need” that’s clearly based on Toby Green, and “Rocochet” that takes from Ellis. Just something to watch out for I guess.

71/100

Trevor Omoto – The Way

[soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/737786791″ params=”color=#ff5500&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false&show_teaser=true” width=”100%” height=”130″ iframe=”true” /]

This is the second track released this week that say its debut on a Jonas Aden demo stream. The track sounds like it could have been a collaboration between Brooks and Zonderling or Don Diablo which is to say that it has a lot going for it. It has great break melodies and interesting drops. Where it suffers is in the arrangement and odd future bass inclusions in the second breakdown. These questionable choices ruin the flow of the track but do not detract from how far above this is from the normal stuff being offered by future house labels. Here’s to hoping that Trevor Omoto picks up where Brooks left off.

76/100

Timmo Hendricks & Jordan Grace – By Your Side

[soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/735839101″ params=”color=#ff5500&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false&show_teaser=true” width=”100%” height=”130″ iframe=”true” /]

Probably the strongest start for any of the major labels would be from Protocol who went back to their progressive roots with Timmo Hendricks with this one alongside vocalist Jordan Grace. The track is about as strong as they come for this genre with infectious melodies and powerful vocals that aren’t too cheesy. There’s a dream-like quality to the track with hints of old and new in it. Adventure, mystique, and intrigue pervade the mix which make it something exceptional despite the relatively simple drop melody and lyrical content. In the end, there’s something to be said for simply doing something well. It might not be the most original thing out there, but I’ll be damned if this wasn’t fun to listen to.

86/100

KAAZE & Sam Tinnesz ft. Silverberg – Wolves


New year, new Revealed. Sort of. They kicked things off by posting about their new motto, “Together We Go All Out” and announced a dedication to highlighting upcoming talent on the revamped “Revealed Radar” which was previously reserved for Community compilations. So how does Revealed start off their main releases? By getting a KAAZE remix of one of Sam Tinnesz’s more popular tracks. Almost five million streams on Spotify and used in multiple ads over the past years as the original came out in 2017. Meanwhile, the original producer, Silverberg, hardly gets any mention in anyone’s social media posts. I suppose I was just hoping that Revealed would do something more original and earth-shattering to start off the year. But as time goes on, it seems that they are adopting worse and worse practices. First they mimic Strange Fruit’s release and Spotify practices and now they’re following in Spinnin’s footsteps by having their popular artists remix old tracks and package them as new. And for the song itself, KAAZE didn’t change much in the breakdowns and put on a new variant of “Up In Smoke” for the drop. Spoiler alert for next week’s recap, the Revealed Radar releases aren’t great either. It seems that the label can’t get one step ahead without going two steps back. Here’s to hoping they eventually find their footing in 2020.

61/100

Stefan Bors, R-MAC & Hi3ND – Tunisia

[soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/737786563″ params=”color=#ff5500&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false&show_teaser=true” width=”100%” height=”130″ iframe=”true” /]

Starting out the year for Glow Records are a trio of bright talents poised to take on 2020. R-MAC handled the breakdown melodies while Stefan Bors lent his hand to the sound selection and Hi3nd to finish off the arrangement and ideas. At 140BPM, the track is faster than typical big room fare but keeps in line with its energy and vibe. The arrangement is tight and well-structured, delivering meaningful progressions throughout the track. The melodies themselves might not be for everyone, but the track is well-produced to make the most of what it has. It’s curious to see what identity Glow will take on as 2020 gets underway.

78/100

We hope you enjoyed our recap of selected songs from last week. If there is a song that you felt should have been on here, be sure to leave it in the comments below and we’ll do our best to give our take on it. Certain songs were not included because they will be covered in more detail in the following days so make sure you’re following our social media pages to see all of our latest posts! 

Zedd & Kehlani – Good Thing (Marc Benjamin Remix)
Broz Rodriguez x Fito Silva – Manos Arriba
We Rise Together (#LOCA100) 8 Artists. 1 Track.
Laureano – Think Twice (ft. Yaro, Maline)
Martin Garrix, Matisse & Sadko feat. Michel Zitron – Hold On
LBLVNC – Insatiable (feat. Vindon)
Ummet Ozcan, Steve Aoki & Dzeko – Popcorn

What's Your Reaction?

0In Love0Happy0Not Sure0OMG0Angry0Sad