REVIEW | Zee & Eli “I Wanna Dance EP” Flumo Recordings

2012 is a year that has started in a positive vein for house music, the scene is awash with bright new talent championing a sound that is saturated with haunting vocals that feed off throbbing bass lines and deep, twisting, soulful lines. A pair of artists that count themselves in this number are Zee & Eli, this dynamic duo have certainly caught our ears thus far.

This pair hail from the UK’s south coast, not really known for it’s house music pedigree or sun licked riviera, nevertheless Zee & Eli seem to mean business with their first release on Spanish imprint Flumo. They describe their sound as  a “blend of house meets nu-disco, indie dance and big bass lines” which definitely covers there bases and is an attempt not to limit these artists to inhabiting a certain pigeon hole. With early releases from imprints such as Flumo, Ponton, Hype Muzik, it_Tizz and ZiiZii Records and influences cited as  Jamie Jones, Maceo Plex, Lee Foss, Solomun, Claude VonStroke, Crazy P and Tim Green these lads are ticking the correct boxes for the musical journey they are intending on embarking on. Special mention needs to be made that Tim Green has been their early high profile champion and has dropped their tracks at several of his gigs.

Saturation is a word that most in the know would use to describe the number of releases of music that considers themselves to be a “blend of house meets nu-disco, indie dance and big bass lines” and this release does stand out from the crowd. All tracks seem to have a definable “sound” that runs throughout the release, the duo seem to have a clear image on their sound and I feel that this will run in their favour and they will develop as their productions blossom. Ones to watch perhaps? They could well be and only time will tell.

The first track on the release is “I Wanna Dance” a chuggy and clunky number that is populated by a nice vocal and looped synth. Peak time it certainly is not but it is certainly a track that would build a set nicely and get heads nodding as the floor fills.

“Mind Games” is slightly more upbeat but falls into roughly the same line as the first track. I say roughly as it has a more upbeat feel to it. I prefer it, I feel it has more personality straight off the mark. The duo are keen to highlight there hankering for giving home to old pieces of analogue production equipment and experimenting to see what can be extracted from them. I think that that skill manifests itself on this number, it has a nice rolling analogue warmth to it, offset by a stabbing synth that takes the lead. My favourite on the EP!

Bringing up the rear is “A Visit From God”, something we have all either dreamed off, or attained somewhere on our weekend journey, only for it to go up in smoke when reality sets in. We are greeted not by the voice of the Messiah (I always imagine him to have a gravely, husky voice) but by that of a female that asks us to “do me baby” and goes on to extol that she “wants me baby” and so on and so forth. Maybe not The Messiah but close enough for some I guess! The track builds up nicely with a littering of percussion and the aforementioned vocals and then presents us out of the blue with a squelchy, croaking bass line.

A nice solid release from these up and comers that does give a glimpse of a real edge, a sound that they seem to be focused on and I feel they will develop with subsequent releases. They do maintain a feel of analogue warmth that perhaps can be attributed to their love of old production gear. Watch this space and keep your lugs peeled for anymore offerings from these guys. Guess what? You also get a free track off them if you care to have a listen to the download link below, and we all love a free lunch. I’m not going to review “Feel It”, you guys have a listen and download if it tickles your fancy. I did!