Zero 7
Another Late Night
Azuli / Kinetic
Sam Hardaker and Henry Binns (Zero 7) have been making a name for themselves in the U.K. for the past two years, starting with their remix of Radiohead’s “Climbing Up the Walls” and their gold-selling debut, Simple Things. About to embark on a U.S. tour, the duo has been enlisted to create the fourth installment of the Late Night series (the first three having been done by Fila Brazillia, Howie B., and Rae & Christian).
Another Late Night was devised by premier U.K. house label, Azuli, to invite dance’s best producers to share their musical influences with the dance public. In the case of Zero 7, their influences are down(tempo) and dirty – a deep, soulful throb to reverberate through your melancholy. Aside from contributing their own stellar remake of Johnny Osbourne’s “Truth & Rights,” these fellows mix an intriguing array of mellow tunes, ranging from downtempo tracks from Roots Manuva and Cinematic Orchestra to underground hip-hop with Slum Village, Quasimoto, and Souls of Mischief. There’s the introspective pop of Joy Zipper and Jim O’Rourke. World music’s given the downtempo touch with Da Lata and Herbert’s remix of Serge Gainsbourg’s “Bonnie & Clyde.” Even classic R&B gets the Zero 7 nod with Leroy Hutson’s “Cool Out” and the Stylistics’ gem, “People Make the World Go Round.”
Though, at first glance, these disparate sources seem as though they could only lead to cacophony, Binns and Hardaker’s impeccable taste is rivaled only by their skill in choosing and mixing this incredible music into a cohesive whole. It’s almost as though they’ve reinvented the music. It’s a war on genre that a true music connoisseur can appreciate and groove to.
Azuli: http://www.azuli.com • Kinetic: http://www.kineticrecords.com • Another Late Night: www.anotherlatenight.com
