FUNKERMAN FT. I-FAN - THE LIGHT
Funkerman is in the form of his life right now and plainly having stacks of fun with it to boot. New single The Light sees him take on and conquer yet another classic trope of popular music - the pseudo - religious anthem.
Success in this small sub-sub genre requires careful planning and execution to avoid sounding like a cheese-fuelled horror show. The aim here is to provide the listener with an intensively uplifting experience without swerving too deeply into gospel territory. No choirs.
Funkerman rises to the challenge admirably. The Light makes you feel incredibly good when you listen to it, with its super slow and floaty build up over a pumping bass line. Vocalist I-Fan sings with unmistakable zeal - one imagines his fists are clenched. In an era over-populated by vastly over-autotuned pop muppets, there's a lesson to be learned here on how to do vocal manipulation right, with subtle electronic effects. It helps, of course, that I-FAN is a genuinely fantastic singer.
"It's going to be alright," sings I-Fan as the track reaches its climax. And you know what? With music this good hitting the world's collective eardrums on a regular basis, it actually will be. The radio edit comes in at almost bang on three minutes long, which everyone knows it the perfect length for a pop song. The dark mix beefs up the electro but keeps the floaty, simple-yet-sweet piano. Not especially dark, but definitely especially good. Dutch producer Piet van Dongen supplies a deftly executed remix of The Light to this release. His version shows off his techno pedigree without veering too far from the overall theme of the package, swapping some of the top notes for some neat mid-level layers that do plenty to add interest.
Artist Rutger Termohlen created the striking artwork for the release. The cover is a bold yet intricate collage featuring a face surrounded by something that may or may not be a halo. The bright colours play on the accents behind Funkerman's own logo. Termohlen and Funkerman previously worked together on tracks Remember and Blow and plan to explore an ongoing creative partnership.
Funkerman ft. I-Fan -
The Light is out from today on Flamingo Recordings and exclusively available on
www.beatport.com and
iTunes. The track will be available on all other online music retailers from April 2nd.
