Five of the Best: King Britt Remixes

Image: King Britt

He's one of the most prolific and inspiring producers in electronic music, since he first turned out a tune on Strictly Rhythm back in 1990 he has been gifting us grooves that have had our hips shaking on the regular. That man is King Britt, someone who has traversed a number of sounds since that first beat dropped 25 years ago.

There's been smoky hip hop as part of Digable Planets (he's also worked with The Roots rapper Dice Raw and De La Soul), pop experimentation with Martin Fry of ABC and Alison Moyet, and straight up house music genius during a particularly potent period at the turn of the century.

He heads to London in October to play an intimate show at Shapes, a very rare chance to see him DJ in the UK. Prior to the Hackney Wick gig we've selected five of the best remixes he's delivered over the years, serving as a great introduction to the master of the pared down groove.

H-Foundation 'Tonight' (King Britt's Sexy Mix)'

You're asking for trouble calling a remix the sexy mix, which reaks more of operation yew tree than it does delectable house music. This however has no cause to call Trading Standards; sexy couldn't be a more accurate description of this gloriously languid groove.

The lyrics evoke a dreamy state, the female vocal urging "so now we're dancing in this passion that this feeling creates, I know we're drowning in the moment but this feeling can wait", but it's the mesmerising production that really elevates the track.

Lush and sensual, it's proof that house music has the capabilities to be much more than dancefloor fodder (although this is a brilliantly effective record to take the pace down for DJs). It also clearly influenced Disclosure, who nabbed the "wrapped up in your touch" line for the Sam Smith vocalled 'Latch'.

Donna Lewis 'I Love You Always Forever' (Sylk 130 Remix)

The original of this is one of the nineties most unashamed bubblegum pop moments, and the saccharine vocal turn from Welsh singer Lewis remains on the track - there's no airbrushing it to the side.

Instead its underpinned by the funk fabric which defined Britt's Sylk 130 project, evoking jazzy textures and lounge vibes for a sound which too was very much the product of the decade it was made. That's no bad thing though, with the production rescuing the debatable charm of the original for a surprisingly enjoyable pop remix.

Natasha Kmeto 'Deeply' (Fhloston Paradigm Dance Mix)

Another of Britt's aliases has been Fhloston Paradigm, the pseudonym he's used to push out music on Hyperdub which evokes a fascination with the synth heavy soundtracks of John Carpenter films from the eighties.

This remix under the moniker combines that approach with many of his signature moves for an emotive house rework that is very much in the vein of classic King Britt. He strips the vocal of its immediacy in favour of a more ethereal barely there vibe, and pilots the groove into deep territory with a slo mo house twist that eschews the original's speedier tempo.

The end manages to bring the Fhloston vibe, drifting into a three minute plus abyss of gorgeous electronica and shoegaze vibes that eschews any kind of kick drum.

Tenth & Parker 'Kool Down' (King Britt's Scuba Remix)

The Scuba project has been something Britt has dipped in and out of over the years, often churning out aquatic grooves that live up to the moniker's name. This remix makes the breathy vocal the centre point, with gentle percussion and atmospheric pads making for a laid back vibe.

Josh One 'Contemplation' (King Britt Funke Remix)

There's few records that scream Ibiza as much as this absolutely joyous ten minutes of H.O.U.S.E. The slowly building gem takes the trip hop original into Balearic heaven, with the "open up your mind" whispered refrain slowly repeated as more and more elements are woven in.

There's the skittering drums - almost breakbeat like - the haunting background melodies and the infectious bassline that takes a full two minutes to make an appearance. And then those chords, which then erupt into delicious stabs at the halfway point, making for an elongated orgasm of a record that is the epitome of trance-like repetition.

It's enduring simplicity has made it a record for all occasions, and we've heard Dixon use it to kick up a gear during an Innervisions boat party set, Laurent Garnier take a breather from pounding techno in a warehouse and Carl Cox smash Space to smithereens with it. One of the greatest house tracks of all time.

King Britt plays Shapes Saturday 17th October - head here for King Britt tickets or use the ticket box below.

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