Category: Song Of The Day

SONG OF THE DAY: Beverlei Brown – “Wishing On A Star”

When I first saw this, I kept thinking – please don’t be a cover version. To my great delight, “Wishing On A Star” is a glorious pop dance record which melds the slow-to-fast transition (think Soul Solution and Hex Hector’s classic mix of Toni Braxton’s “Unbreak My Heart”) with modern stadium house and electro. It’s in the same vibe as David Guetta/Kelly Rowland “When Love Takes Over” and, more recently, Frenchie Davis “Love’s Got a Hold on Me.” Thankfully the extended mix has a full intro and the dropout to the slower part is accented with a steady beat, so there is no loss of energy (or dancers frantically looking for a beat for an extended time). For a more Avicii-esque take, check out the Odd remix. It’s great to see that the Romanians are discovering the beautiful vocal of Beverlei Brown, a brilliant blend of soothing beauty, balanced power, and a hint of unique quirkiness – like an updated mashup of Gabrielle and Michelle Gayle. If you like “Wishing on a Star,” go back and listen to her track with Adrian Sina “I Can’t Live Without You” and her lost ’90s house classic “On and On.”

Image courtesy of Roton.

SONG OF THE DAY: Audien ft Michael S – “Leaving You”

Watching Audien’s sound develop with each release is definitely a journey. Fresh off the massive big room monster “Sup” is the straight-ahead dance pop “Leaving You.” Yes it’s pop, but its cool and club-friendly as well. Imagine if Zedd would have produced Ne-Yo’s last single – combining catchy emotional pop breakup lyrics from a male perspective with a dimensionally-layered electro track. This is the kind of song that, if recorded by a major pop or R&B male vocalist, would become a massive radio hit with next to no burn. If you are one of the DJs who packed floors with “These Are the Days” or are looking for a great male vocal track to add to your club sets, “Leaving You” should be at the top of your buy list on Beatport. Lovers of vocal dance pop should be on this one as well.

Image courtesy of Zouk.

SONG OF THE DAY: Bart Claessen – “Showtime”

Aggressive electro and glitch mixed with touches of classic rave samples and elements of stadium house is the formula for “Showtime.” The new big room track from Dutch DJ/producer Bart Claessen is in the mold of Zedd’s “Spectrum,” notable for the seamless blending of multiple divergent genres and sounds into a cohesively flowing track. With its vocal effects as well as mood and energy changes, “Showtime” works well as a primetime focus for any big room set. I saw that Bart has 4 more tracks coming out in the next 3 months and if “Showtime” is any indication of where Bart is going, I will definitely be watching for them.

Image courtesy of Big & Dirty.