Category: Old

Rose Rouge – St Germain

Rose Rouge is a stone cold classic. No question. Iconic drums, iconic piano, iconic Marlena Shaw vocal sample. We know this.

But maybe, like me, you’ve always thought of it as a sunset record. A Café del Mar kind of number. It certainly does that job.

Recently though, I was at Giant Steps listening to a vinyl set by DJ Sotofett when he dropped it. And let me tell you, it absolutely went off.

Streaming the track, the horn section can blur into a single layer. But hearing the track on the incredible Giant Steps soundsystem pulled them apart in the most incredible way. The two horns trading blows at 3:50 section (trumpet played by Pascal Ohsé and tenor sax played by Edouard Labor) sounded nothing short of sensational.

Do yourself a favour: if you ever get the chance to hear Rose Rouge on a proper soundsystem, take it. You might discover that one of the definitive chill-out records of the 2000s is also a devastating club track.

Two Weeks – FKA Twigs

I’ve had this in my head for about a month now. It’s FKA Twigs huge 2014 single Two Weeks.

The lyrics tell the story of seducing a taken man. A story of intense unrequited sexual desire. I’ll quench your thirst, just chase the high and stop your doubting – the vibe is sensual and erotic to the max – give me two weeks, you won’t recognise her. Delivered with FKA Twigs’ inimitable blend of vulnerability, intimacy and aggressive sexuality, the track feels almost filthy.

And here is a free download of Ben Gomori’s version. As the name suggests, it goes even higher and plays out lovely on the dancefloor. Enjoy.

Best of 2025

Happy New Year to you all. Thank you as ever for checking out the blog. For the second year running over 1,000 of you came to the site, which is really special.

Here are my most played tracks of the year courtesy of Spotify. Heavily featured artists include TEED (as usual), Maribou State, Seb Wildblood, Caribou, Little Dragon and NEIL FRANCES. You’ll find the new Leon Vynehall, along with various bits and pieces across all genres that I had on repeat this year. There is also a complete album by Marconi Union; I think I put it on and then fell asleep while it played in a never-ending loop. You’ll understand when you hear it.

And as a little New Year’s treat, here is a link to my top 48 on Soundcloud. Knock yourself out.

Walking on a Dream (TEED Remix) – Empire of the Sun

17 years on from its original release, Empire of the Sun have released a remix package of their biggest track, Walking on a Dream. The TEED version caught my attention, but the EP takes you on a tour of various genres (and levels of quality) with Wiz Khalifa, Axwell and Kaskade getting in on the act, amongst others.

If you enjoyed that, I’m playing a set at Stokey Karaoke on 29th November where I’ll be leaning into an indie electro vibe. Expect Tame Impala, La Roux, TEED and more. Get in touch for details.

TEED’s new album is Always With Me is out 5th December. I’ve been enjoying the singles so far (especially Desire and The Echo). It’s very much worth checking out what Orlando has to offer, as always. New name, same quality.

Fairground – Simply Red

Right yes yes Happy New Year Happy New Year now let’s get on with it.

My first post of 2025 is my top played song of 2024. And it happens to be a song from 1995. Fairground. The dulcet tones of Mick Hucknall, a truly anthemic chorus, plus an arresting samba beat (originally Sergio Mendes’, via The Goodmen). Lovely stuff.

Shout out to the team at Balearic London for reawakening my love for this one on the dancefloor.