Bondax have been bothering the more popular and accessible end of house music for a year or so now - this new release follows up on Gold, and manages to take their sound to the next level.
"Giving It All" arrives as popular dance music seems to be heading firmly back into the disco sound that led to the dreaded 'Funky House' sound popular just over ten years ago. Thankfully Bondax are somewhat better than Phats & Smalls. This is a polished house track complete with infectious piano riffs, sunny and soulful female vocals and just a dash of Balearic ambience... But it's undoubtedly aimed at the charts as much as the dancefloor, with the sheen almost tangible, yet it's so catchy it is hard not to at least admire the brassiness.
The release comes with three mixes. The FKJ Remix is cut-up with a laid back funky approach that contrasts to the original and is a bit less overtly commercial. The Friend Within Remix pushes the piano up in the mix and layers a thick, dubby sound over everything else - it has a harder, garage-influenced sound than anything else here.
Joe Goddard predictably delivers the star remix here, his version instantly notable for its comparative subtlety. Stripping the track back to the vocal and a simple cosmic bass line this is much closer to a picturesque sunset then a meander through grimey bars and clubs full of coloured shots and stag-dos. The vocals are free of effects, giving them a much more honest feel, and a organic feeling percussion that still retains a mechanical junkyard edge adds some movement.
Giving It All is out now on Relentless, available from Amazon.co.uk on MP3 [affiliate link]. Watch the video below: