<House> The first thing I noticed about this album was that the ratio of local to international tracks is 3:1. Perhaps this is what Malankane means by titling his releases House Blendz? Potentially a top notch release, the overall effect is spoilt a little by one or two tracks; like mixing a teaspoon of store-bought instant granules into a mug of coffee made with freshly ground South American beans. The Glenn Underground remix of Into Life by The Rurals ft Jaidene Veda is a blissful, bass guitar-heavy track that sets a mellow mood for the album that is only slightly altered by So Insane by Abwalk ft Horward. Difference by Darque ft Kaylow is a hauntingly beautiful production, intelligently arranged with great vocals. The P.M Project remix of Happy Day by DJ Veany ft Mindgames is monotonous and gets annoying very quickly, immediately followed and contrasted by another P.M Project mix, this time of Lifted by MR Cee ft Lady X which is far more melodic. Facing the Sun by Rudesoul smacks of the instant coffee described earlier; it’s flat and hollow sounding. The rest of the album, though, is pure class. The unplugged mix of DJ Hypnosis’ Far Away is just great, and Simple Love by Essential I ft Jayla is another example of the formula: textured melodic arrangement + talented vocalist = good music. The Trancemicsoul remix of So Happy by Tom Conrad ft Dawn Tallman is brilliant, building slowly up to and maintaining a crescendo that just doesn’t let you be. The final track, an Essential I remix of Move On by Divine Lopez & OG, is a little fast paced but a good enough production to keep you nodding right through to the end. A solid release overall.
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