German producers Thomas Knoll and Marcel Florschutz are known, respectively, for progressive and minimal house.? Yet when they work together as Boss Axis, their sound is smooth, melodic house with a tropical feel.? Take a listen to “Tranquilla” and it will transport you to a chill poolside lounge or groovy beach party with its mellow feel, Spanish guitars, and shuffling beats. This isn’t a hands-in-air big room party jam, it’s sexy, classy house with a tea dance vibe.? The only thing missing is a cocktail in your hand and maybe a topline by a soulful singer whispering seductive lines to entice you to shimmy.
Earlier this year, I wrote up “Google Google Apps Apps” by PERSIA ft Daddies Plastik for its call to political action to fight gentrification- as voiced by ferociously fierce and subversive drag queens.? Following in those high-heeled footsteps, the fabulous and fierce SF Bay scenester Pollo Del Mar (last seen with Kwanzaa Jones in the playful “Made You Look”) takes no prisoners as she satirically emulates the whining complaints of the overprivileged aristocracy.? That’s a hoity-toity way of saying that she is mocking rich bitches.? When you put their utterances in the perspective of real problems like “poverty, hunger, homelessness, racism, homophobia, deficit, AIDS,” they become just as funny as you might imagine – and that is the power of a good drag queen – finding humor and entertaining while also stirring political movements. The pumping tribal production of Matt Consola, Jamie Torres, and LFB keep the beats energetic so that the circuit boys may not even notice they are being schooled. Be sure to check out the well-titled Big Kid & Brian Cua Hunty mix as well.? What makes this a perfect?Sunday?Funday record is that Pollo Del Mar demonstrates that there is more to drag than just runway glamour and lip-syncing.
Image Courtesy of Swishcraft.
Matt Consola & James Torres ft Pollo Del Mar & LFB – #WhiteLadyProblems
I am having flashbacks and I’ve never done LSD.? Not only is ’90s house music back as NuHouse, every subgenre is being brought back.? H2SO4 is the chemical formula of Sulfuric Acid- a fitting name for this corrosive mix of early ’90s techno with a lo-fi and industrial edge.? It feels like they were inspired by Billy Idol’s underrated CyberPunk album, Traci Lords’ underappreciated 1000 Fires album, and early Nine Inch Nails.? The song even sounds like it was made on a vintage Atari ST with MusicMaker.? If you are looking for something completely different and unlike anything being played by the superstar DJs, here’s some “acid”-ic techno to weird you out.
