20/01/2019: “Rain (Dense & Pika Vocal Remix)” by Kerri Chandler

The original mix of “Rain” by Kerri Chandler, released in 1998, is a perfectly capable and pleasant piece of Garage House.

However, I think Dense and Pika have really outdone themselves with this belter of a Tech House remix.

The beat hits hard and fast, with a slightly echo bass drum. It feels expansive. Then the rest of the percussion builds and fluidly evolves throughout the track. The hi-hats switch and suddenly the whole atmosphere of the song can be shifted slightly.

The other thing I love about the drums is that they have a rolling feeling, because in the second bar of the loop a syncopated hi-hat is placed. It gives the beat a sweet little shuffle.

The song as a whole is pretty minimal, only occasional vocal stabs and some wonderfully dubbed out piano chords, which provide the bulk of the melody. It actually does feel like a very dubby song, with plenty of space in the mix, and a clever use of reverb and delay effects. There’s even some tape hiss added to the second half!

The song was released on Nervous Records in 2018.

Sometimes less really is more!

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