Category: Song Of The Day

SONG OF THE DAY: Sophia May – “Anywhere With You”

Bristol-based singer Sophia May returns with “Anywhere With You” a strong follow-up to her string of vocal dance-pop hits – “I Can’t Help Myself,” “I Will Never Give You Up,” “Come Back,” and “Another Day.”? Since the package is all remixes (Johnny Mac, Dark Intensity, Carlos Mojica, 4Strings), it’s hard to gauge what the original sounds like, but I am guessing it started as a progressive pop dance song with the focus being the vocals.? Sophia is one of those rare singers that can nail both the pretty fragile trance girl and the huskier stronger sultry diva voice – often in the same song – and make it sound cohesive.?? The remixes by Johnny Mac, Dark Intensity, and Carlos Mojica are different takes on electro and progressive with hints of stadium in the mix.? The 4 Strings mix stands out for its retro-trance pop feel – recalling classic Ian Van Dahl or DJ Sammy records, but with modern electro touches. Like Sophie’s other records,? “Anywhere With You” will sound just as good in the clubs as it does on the radio.

Image Courtesy of Tazmania.

SONG OF THE DAY: Katia Nicole – “The Girl Can’t Help It”

After Alex Clare and the infamous Weetabix commercial, it was only a matter of time for dubstep to meet bubble gum pop.? Enter the scene, Miss Katia Nicole.? The adorable 15 year-old Miami-born lass made her debut at Winter Music Conference, performing “The Girl Can’t Help It” at Mova flanked by a troupe of five dancers. Not that she needed the backup as she sang the full lead vocal live and impressively well, especially since she was doing choreography the whole time.? Cowritten by Katia and coproduced by Akon, the song itself is darkly pretty yet age-appropriate at the same time.?? There is a slight freestyle feel to the vocal phrasing, which is not a surprise considering her admiration of Lil’ Suzy.? The production is by-the-numbers dubstep in the chorus, and while it may seem a bit Skrillex circa 2010, considering the target is the teen market, that is not necessarily a bad thing.? This song screams Radio Disney and is a great entry for preteens into the EDM world.???? The video is quite precious as well, though one word of caution to young Katia, be careful of the guy as you might be having a Hailey Rowe moment.

Image Courtesy of Parimore Music.

SONG OF THE DAY: Lange & Susana – “A Risk Worth Taking”

When we last heard from British producer Lange, it was “Our Brief Time In the Sun,” a beautiful and modern instrumental trance track with a bit of a classic feel.? Changing gears, this new single “Risk Worth Taking,” is more aggressive, with a harder electro feel that still shares the classic feel of one his harder mixes from the early 2000s, though completely modern in execution. The track is energetic, the vocal is quite strong, and the chorus is hooky and memorable.? It’s dark and light at the same time – if that makes sense.? One complaint though, in the extended version available on Beatport, a long patch of the vocals is over a massive beatless dropout – following the trend of many current EDM tracks.? The video version on YouTube, though, is a bit more commercial-sounding and so much more energetic- it really translates the emotion of the song to a higher degree.? It would be so nice for us DJs to be able to purchase an extended version – with intro and outro – of this version… Especially since not everyone spins in rooms that can handle extended dropouts.?? Other than that, “A Risk Worth Taking” is a brilliant vocal electro-trance record and it’s easy to see why the big guys like Gareth Emery, Armin Van Buuren, and Markus Schulz are supporting it.

Image Courtesy of Lange Music.