Wednesday 13 October 2021

Bite-sized Bits 19

Robert Williams - Hot Rod Race (1976)


Another throwback this time, but to something a little different. I mentioned Positive Yellow some time ago now, last summer I think? It's a little album from ThorHighHeels, who you might know from their YouTube work. Much like the video content, the audio stuff that comes from the ThorHighHeels camp is... eclectic to say the least. Sometimes dropping with irony and often a frivolous self-awareness I could understand why some would be turned away - I must admit that some of the accompanying album art is incredibly gaudy but intentionally so, if the little note on that album cover didn't give it away.

But much like similarly self-aware electronic acts such as Ceephax or DMX Krew, if you dig in a little there's plenty that's worth your time. I've taken another cut from Positive Yellow this time, which is a love letter to all kinds of 90's sounds. We talked about Summer's Edge last time, which embodies that beach House vibe of the time, but here we're going a little darker with Beat The Police. A proper 'ardcore breakbeat number complete with shelf wobbling bassline, while short at just shy of 2 minutes long, it shows that THH has a pretty good grasp on the genre and also has a ton of love for it. And that's really Positive Yellow in a nutshell, the tracks are all these short sketches of various genres with a retro edge - but each of them is a fantastic. It doesn't feel too pandering either, with the exception of some samples from Tekken (I believe?), nothing feels shoehorned in to get that nostalgic reaction.



And that's why I recommend Positive Yellow as a starting point really, short and easily digested but still showing off THH's production prowess. From here I'd suggest the OSTs they made for a game called Umurangi Generation, some of the tracks from Yellow appear on there but it's mostly original - and keeps true to that short sketches format as it clocks in at a weighty 82(!) tracks, plus an extra 51 from the DLC OST as well, so a plenty to go at. And that'll be all for today, I'll be back come Friday with more but until then, as always - stay safe and enjoy the music.

-CVF

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