It can’t be much fun being cloaked in solid darkness 24 hours a day for months on end, but then the prospect of experiencing equally tedious endless daylight can’t exactly be appealing either. But so it is for Sami Liuski and Pauli Jylhankangas who, based in the northern climes of Finland, put up with the dual aspects of luminosity and murk for long stretches of time. Perhaps to counter the the interminable winters or rather to celebrate the wonder of boundless sunshine they create warm, ebullient electro/disco sounding like it’s been beamed in directly from the early ’80’s.
Their latest output bearing these traits is Samasavel on the mighty Clone, coming with a remix by the highly revered Dutch master of all things disco, Alden Tyrell. The original mix plays out with very organic sounding drums marking a stark contrast to the almost toy-like nature of vintage synths that gleam with a plastic chrome finish. Topped off by a rolling slap bass and a bevy of sci-fi style atmospheric effects, it’s a track that isn’t trying to take itself too seriously, though as much as I try to I can’t seem to either. I think it may have something to do with the main synth line reminding me partly of Jean Michel-Jarre’s “Oxygene (Part II),” which in turn reminds me of the movie “Gallipoli” — not the most feel good film of all time. Tyrell’s mix beefs up the arpeggiated parts of the track and introduces more weighty drums but essentially leaves the melodies intact, so although I’m left with the same feeling of nonchalance, it seems to balance the cheesiness with something a bit more solid. For those who haven’t seen “Gallipoli” or heard “Oxygene” way too much, Samasavel might just tick all your retro electro/disco boxes, but I’m afraid I can’t move past those connotations.
