Album Review: The Yellow Collection - Eskimo Recordings

BlackPlastic.co.uk regulars Eskimo are back with their latest compilation in their ongoing series, this one labelled The Yellow Collection. Continuing the gentle progression of recent entries, this new suite of songs feels like a step into deeper, more dancefloor tuned sounds.

Opening with Atella's gorgeous Mechanical Sparrow, as premiered on BlackPlastic.co.uk earlier this year, The Yellow Collection doesn't so much as announce itself as it does slip into the room gently shimmering, softly unveiling its presence. Greece's NTEIBINT teams up with ex-Twin Shadow bassist Russ Manning (here as Rush Midnight) on the rhythmic dream pop of By Your Side. Du Tonc's We Can Hold On gets a previously unreleased dub by German label favourites Satin Jackets, continuing a journey that sees each track become a little deeper than the one before.

By track four things have descended into a far more minimal, dubby territory than you would readily expect from the Belgian label these days... MiddleSkyBoom's Slow With The Run is a deep and percussive number, random noises punctuating the bags of reverb-laden space that the track is successfully constructed around. We also get a punk-funk basslines on the acid-flecked psychedelia of Man Power's Fisky, a track that deviates little over it's tightly wound nine-minute length.

There is little let-up on The Yellow Collection until Horixon puncture the atmosphere with Colours, featuring Else Born - a dramatic disco record the offers just a slight reprieve before Vinny Villbass' The Itch dives straight back into tech-house territory, albeit with a Ballearic disco-tinged break that recalls Tangerine Dream. El Wild, from Mexico's Zombies In Miami, is like the paranoid heat of a midday sun in aural form - cyclical synthesisers, distorted bass and lots of reverb.

It is the penultimate track, James Curd & Turbotito's blissfully removed You Could Be Floating, before things let off properly. The vocal almost audibly sighing at the release of tension amidst slowly birthed electronics. And then Go March close things out with the wonky skate-math-funk of Rise, a muted and funny end to things.

The Yellow Collection is a considerably more wild release than we have had from Eskimo for some time with even their regular artists turning in something more experimental and introspective. It may jostle at the seams, but as tends to be the case the individual quality of everything here is consistently high... The Yellow Collection makes a fine soundtrack to getting baked in the hot summer sun.

The Yellow Collection is available through Eskimo Recordings tomorrow. Stream the track Fisky by Man Power in full below:

Out May 20, pre-order here! http://news.lnk.to/TYC Eskimo Recordings is back for its annual inspection of what propels the Belgian imprint’s throttle, exploring the boundaries of their house, disco and pop infusions in ‘The Yellow Collection’. Each artist has their own identity but Eskimo forms a package of seamless musical treats and forges yet new allies in the dreamy landscape of ‘The Yellow Collection’. More info http://maouris.co.uk/music/eskimo-recordings-presents-the-yellow-collection https://soundcloud.com/manpower-1 http://www.eskimorecordings.be/ https://www.facebook.com/eskimorecordings/ https://twitter.com/eskimorecords

EP Review: Hold It Like I Own It - Horixon feat. Maya

One of a clutch of tracks Eskimo have released from their recent Orange Collection compilation, Hold It Like I Own It is the new release from Horixon, featuring vocals from Maya.

Back when I reviewed The Orange Collection I described Hold It Like I Own It as "a glittering moment of electronic pop - a powerful vocal hook riding a deep sine wave bassline”… That still stands, but here the track is given a number of re-imaginings that build on the it.

The original (and its accompanying extended version) retains a sun blushed innocence, soft keys and husky melodic vocals soaring over clean percussion. First up on the remixes, label mates This Soft Machine give the track a slightly more cosmic and progressive sound, with a staggered building bassline and reverberating whooshing effects. The same act also provide an extended dub, which gives a deeper, druggier feel to the other mix and extends it out to a full ten-minutes.

Hermigervill’s remix is more Balearic - almost garage-influenced with swinging rhythms and loose, hollow bass. It’s a natural fit to the original and just as delicately played. Hermigervill’s dub is a deeper version of the same style, but with the extra space giving it a more minimal tech feel, albeit one that still feels drenched in sun and would be perfect for that post-sunset-on-the-beach moment.

Finally an additional original track rounds out the package - Burnt Orange is a deeper instrumental cut, the sound of hot weather and long evenings, the music warping like a mirage in the midday sun or vinyl left outside.

Hold It Like I Own It is out on Monday through Eskimo Recordings. Listen to the original below:

Album Review: The Orange Collection - Eskimo Recordings

What comes after pink, blue and green? Well according to Eskimo Recordings it is orange... And so they follow up The Green Collection with this new offering, The Orange Collection - the fourth entry in their colour and emotion inspired series.

As my previous coverage of these releases highlights my feelings on these albums have been mixed. Yet I still find it hard to resist giving each new entry a listen, if only out of some desire to recapture some of the glittering brilliance of Eskimo's earlier compilations. The Orange Collection does its best to return your effort in listening to it. Unlike the other entries, which usually felt no real connection to the colour in question, entitling this The Orange Collection makes sense. It's warm, sitting on the edge of sunset... Though whether this is a deliberate refinement of focus or a happy coincidence is up for debate. Perhaps Eskimo simply got around to picking one of the most Balearic of colours 

Eskimo has retained its latter-day fondness for soft electronics and indie vocals but in contrast to previous entries this album feels as Mediterranean influenced as it does Scandinavian, conjuring the feeling of beaches and beachside swimming pools.

It is therefore fitting then that opening track Odds Are Good by Anoraak feels exactly like a dip in a pool out in the sun. Renegades, by Majestique feat. Lakshmi, is similarly sunny... Warm pads and synth stabs creating an infectious and wistful sense, almost like missing the holiday before it has even ended. Like most things here it is almost shockingly polished, but that adds to the perfect summer holiday feeling.

Hold It Like You Own It by Horixon and Maya is a glittering moment of electronic pop - a powerful vocal hook riding a deep sine wave baseline. The album also features two tracks I've featured recently - Du Tonc's Animals and This Soft Machine's On & On - and both feel right at home here in this set.

Amongst all the shimmering pop are some more wonky moments. Moscoman's Fernandez is a hit of Italo-influenced dub that sounds like it soundtracks your weirdest cowboy dreams... Drums clatter as a stark lone guitar riff picks its way amidst a world of synth-kitsch. Elsewhere Marvin and Guy's Unfailling Fall is a deep psychedelic trip, a stark contrast to the lighter moments that make up most of this album.

Closing with the Mees Dierdorp remix of Hydrogen Sea's Wear Out, The Orange Collection comes grinding to a dramatic stop. Synthetic strings swirl and vocals cry out as the album draws to a emotional yet somewhat muted finish. It is by far the best entry in this series yet, and the best album from Eskimo in some time. It is hard not to think this may just be good luck - a number of artists here have featured on previous entries after all - but perhaps they just managed to do a much better job curating the collection this time. Either way, take this with you to the pool this summer and you are guaranteed just a little warmth, no matter the weather.

The Orange Collection is released through Eskimo Recordings on 4 May. Pre-order on iTunes here [affiliate link].

Album Review: Eskimo Recordings Presents The Green Collection

Eskimo used to be one of my absolute favourite labels but in recent years times have changed... Being a music label in the digital age feels more difficult, particularly when your bread and butter was focused on the kind of obscure DJ mixes that often get traded for free online these days (without having to tackle any of that pesky licensing work).

Eskimo are currently primarily focused on their series of colour inspired collections, which kicked off with The Pink Collection, which was focused on feelings in music. The press release makes no particular claim for a theme here and in reality The Green Collection feels like a direct continuation of the styles featured on the previous two albums (Blue being the other, second, release), rather than a new movement.

So The Green Collection boasts a myriad of soft-focused Scandinavia-inspired electronic pop and dance music, eschewing the eclectic styles Eskimo were famous for in favour of something far more restrained. And when it works it is wonderful... Great Things, by Horixon featuring Jacques Teal, is softly spoken warm ambient pop of the highest order. It is what Prince might sound like if he spent 34 years floating alone in space, hushed vocals rubbing up against subtly twinkling synths and dramatic pads. Satin Jackets and Patrick Baker achieve something very similar on album closer Fall Apart - a beautifully considered moment of electronic introspection that represents one of The Green Collections' exclusive tracks.

There are some interesting darker moments too. A strong sense of melancholy runs through this album, to the point that in our current autumnal setting in the northern hemisphere it set me up for a fairly introspective Monday, but you can't criticise some of the depth here. On Found My Place Alexander Skancke and HEwrote create an organic and atmospheric slow-burning folktronica record, full on this season's feelings of introverted tranquility and feelings of transition.

But The Green Collection suffers just as the Pink and Blue collections did - through a lack of consistency. For every genuinely interesting track their are two that feel like phoned-in moments of generic cosmic Ballearia. You can keep the spaced-out piano of Kraak & Smaak's Ghostnote and the chugging electronica of Duncan Gray's Beeech: there is no real life there.

Pick the five best songs from this set and you have a representation of what makes Eskimo great: they can select some terrific music. Sadly the remaining seven represent their biggest flaw: they have no real idea what the difference is between those great standout moments, and the plodding filler. When their mixes were curated by a series of known names there was perhaps more of a sense of accountability - Ivan Smagghe, Radio Slave et al had their names right their on the cover. On The Green Collection I just can't help but feel like no-one really cared enough about any of these albums.

The Green Collection is out now through Eskimo Recordings, order from Amazon.co.uk on CD or MP3 [affiliate links].