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Cosmo Vitelli presents MEDHEAD REMIXES a digital-only LP featuring remixes from his third album MEDHEAD, released on I’m a Cliché in 2022, which included five tracks created in collaboration with Dutch artist Truus de Groot.
Featuring 8 tracks plus an instrumental version, its release a year after MEDHEAD is an opportunity to close this chapter before the next one begins. It is also a reminder of the French producer’s love for reinterpretation, by playfully looking back on the album rather than being revisiting exhaustively.
Indeed, in addition to 2 remixes by Cosmo Vitelli himself, he asked producers he appreciates to pick a track of their own choice to remix, without obsessing on necessarily giving them a club dimension. His guests ended up exploring several atmospheres, with a varying ratio between ethereal and more dance-focused moods, sometimes combining both.
It is always with excitement that Cosmo Vitelli remixes his tracks. Down The Hatch is given a “boogie dub” treatment, thanks to bubbling analog synths and old school drum machines, it is a catchy and funky exercise in less is more production. His remix of How Is It To Be You is an elegant exploration of disco-adjacent atmospheres and arrangements. It does a lot with just a handful of elements and functions as a kind of disco dub, simple from a distance and full of detail when closely listened to.
Andrei Rusu is one half of Romanian duo Khidja. His remixes of How Is It To Be You (one vocal version and one instrumental) are dancefloor-focused cuts, with a catchy vibe in part indebted to 80’s dance genres. Underneath the shiny veneer, ominous synths on the verge of dissonance hint at something darker, like the soundtrack of a forgotten giallo.
A long-time friend of Cosmo’s and a producer recognized for his mind-melting output that spans many genres, Krikor remixes 7 Foot Clown In My Bed. The remix sees Krikor in top dub form, with a 10-ton heavy beat, slow, and hallucinogenic. It’s impossible not to sway in slow motion while playing it.
Krokakai came to Cosmo’s attention following his debut release on Glasgow’s Insible, Inc. His version of Trichophilia blends a subdued post-punk approach with more modern production techniques. The result is ear catching and introspective, almost cinematic at times, while remaining danceable.
Up-and-coming producer DJ F16 Falcon, who released a handful of EPs on Notte Brigante and Association Fatale, revisits Down The Hatch. With a plodding, shuffled rhythm and a leftfield, almost IDM feel, this downtempo remix takes the track into a new, forward-thinking dimension.
Dali Muru & The Polyphonic Swarm, a project led by Enir Da, is behind one of Cosmo’s favourite album of 2022. So it was natural for him to ask the producer to contribute to this release, and he picked Patient Zero. Dub-infused, and ethereal but also focused on movement, this half-step version is captivating.
Froid Dub is a duo made up of Stéphane Bodin & François Marché, who previously recorded music together as Bosco at the turn of the century. For their first remix under this name, they deliver a langourously understated take on Just Like His Dad that strips the tune to its bare elements, for a dub as icy as they come.
Cosmo Vitelli will renew his collaboration with Truss de Groot in 2023 for a full album, and this year will also mark the return of his Bot’Ox duo with a new release.
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- Genre
- Electronic