Alex Attias – Presents LillyGood Party!, Vol. 2

The best record to dance to and do your work out while staying at home is the second compilation of Swiss DJ Alex Attias‘ club series from his Lausanne stint, called LillyGood Party! The twelve tracks feature Peven Everett, Louie Vega, David Murray, Glenn Underground, Yam Who?, and Daymé Arocena, among many others and offer a pretty eclectic mix of soul, jazz, dance, and disco.

The breakbeat and synth stabs of “Touch” by 12 Senses, a project by UK keyboard ace Kaidi Tatham and Danish musicians, brilliantly combines electric and acoustic, with a jazzy piano solo by Poul Reimann. Martin Iveson, also recording under the alias Atjazz, features singer Sarai Jazz on “Playground”, another tripping breakbeat meets dance stomper. Josh Milan is behind the jazzy house mix of “Open Up Your Mind (Honeycomb Vocal Mix)” by Universal Tongues. The moment where the percussion enters the proceedings after the opening keys/synth/piano/vocal pads, works magic on this one. Vocals by Elle are sublime, almost operatic. A wonderful soulful house track.

Things turn decidedly ethno on “Gwotet”, an edit of the brassy David Murray & the Gko-Ka Masters piece which features Pharoah Sanders on sax. Makes for a welcome change of style and mood in sequence and only works after a full listen. Since all the tracks vary in length between about five minutes and over twelve minutes, it is absolutely necessary and worthwhile to stay put and enjoy each track to the fullest. There is a sort of after-hours meditation on the house instrumental epic “Days Of Old” by Our Own Organization, comprised of Andres Ordonez and Jose Rico. Reminds me of our after-hours sessions in Kreuzberg years ago. Chicago house producer Stacy Kidd joins the club here with the Gu Peak True Time Mix of “How Bad I Want Ya”, a percussive, keys-heavy house wonder with soulful vocals by Peven Everett and the help of fellow Chicagoan Glenn Underground.

Mausiki Scales, out of the Atlanta Indie scene and founder of the Common Ground Collective, is up next with the funky and extremely uplifting “Freedom Flight”. The sax and horn arrangement is pretty thick, on the spot and simply über-cool. I’m a big fan of Yam Who? (London based remixer and producer Andy Williams) ever since their stunning remix of Heatwave’s “The Star Of A Story”, but somehow there is a bit of a bugging part on their rework of “Everything”, an otherwise pretty soulful house toon by Dwayne Morgan. Maybe it’s the steel drums? Daymé Arocena can’t do anything wrong and so her brassy house dancer “Stuck” fits perfectly well here.

Elements Of Life, the New York-based collective masterminded by Louie Vega, have the center piece on this compilation, the 12-minute plus “Children Of The World” with a Ben Brophy edit. The first four and a half minutes are sort of a percussive house intro, very typical Vega, before the wonderful Josh Milan (Blaze) takes over (again) the vocals for the banging story of a brighter future for all of us. It was the first release of the “Eclipse” album which also boasted Cindy Mizelle, Lisa Fischer, and Anané. Piano and guitar complement Josh and the 12 minutes fly by so fast that I thought this groove could last forever. From Italy, Pàscal (Viscardi) is featured with an atmospheric, eerie synth stabs-heavy “Arcipelago”. The Yamaha, Korg and Roland keys brings you back to the 90s or thereabouts. The repetitive nature of the piece takes effect after about 4 minutes.

Back to the mid 80s with the electro and ambient sounding “Star Child Going Home” by MJ Lallo, a sort of Rah Band reminder, for the finale of this great comp. We love it!