- The brainchild that started out as a simple collaboration between two New Yorkers, producer and songwriter Markus Moser and than unknown Nadia Ali. It’s been over a year and the new single “Smooth” by IIO is finally out. It also has been nearly a year since the original by IIO was completed but never released. A fan of IIO’s first single “Rapture” (presumably, I can safely say many of you too enjoyed it); the vocals and hook were irresistible and memorable. The follow-up “At The End” was a nice follow-up, but it didn’t have the mass appeal and success as the previous one. Now with “Smooth,” IIO hopes to repeat their success with the help from some of the top progressive, tribal, and trance producers getting a lick at reinventing the sounds of IIO in a 2x12 release by Made Records.
The Original by IIO themselves sound typical mainstream dance. Not to say that’s a bad thing sometimes. Out of the five mixes, this is pure commercial music that will see more airplay through radio waves than on the dancefloor. Nadia’s voice is once again soothing and magnetic as groovy percussions and IIO trademark sounds submerge nicely that looks to be a sure winner for the ladies in the house. The riff that opens the gateway for the break is subtle, but not as pleasing as “Rapture.” This is sure to warm some hearts as spring is nearly upon us once again.
The last remix I heard from Steve Porter was his interpretation of Matthew Dekay’s “Higher Thoughts.” That mix didn’t really do much for me, but he has making it up with his remix for “Smooth.” A blend of smooth (you know what, I’ll go with the pun on this one :) melodies and chunky beats combine into a sure winner. The “progressive” style of house music, the melodies take firm hold for a good amount of the track. This is the ‘coolest’ track out of the five.
Airbase conjures up a quality trance remix for IIO as this gets the stamp of approval of being the epic and peaktime party song out of the five. Lovely melodies lift the ground while the kick drums and b-line hammer out until those trance synths start to crash in. Personally, I can’t really deal with most trance sounds, especially the synths, but Airbase does a good with layering the synth patterns with a solid b-line so that I don’t get up from my seat to stop the track. Be warned, you might just start to smile, as the massive breakdown will throw many people from their seats to start jumping hard.
Dan Duncan & Igor Tchkotoua also known as Pig & Dan has released some massive tracks as of late. With maybe their biggest on Sander’s “Everybody” compilation. Out of the five mixes, this is my favorite. It’s wicked. Kinda has the same appeal as the original version of “Rapture.” House music all the way, Pig and Dan defiantly knows how to keep the original and still be able to add their sounds to make it interesting. The vocals are used to overlap to give it a strong emphasis that Nadia’s voice can take over any music that’s laid above or lower it. Listening to Pig and Dan’s mix, it sounds a bit like this is a yin to IIO’s yang.
Michael Thomas’ Mix as Blackwatch has all the elements as though it’s supposed to be a live performance from the duo. Only Nadia’s voice remains with a guitar solo. Using this as the build, the percussion, and kick-drum comes in and the track becomes a nice break beat that flourishes next to the guitar. Out of the five mixes, I say this is the most ‘pop’ friendly and has the chance to obtain mass appeal. (I keep saying “out of the five” don’t I…shesh)
I’d like to say that if the label released this much earlier, I think it would have brought the New York duo back in the limelight with the new single, but honestly, the masses probably didn’t even know this existed. Unlike DJs and people in the industry, the countless delays and over-hype of “Smooth” may have put the nail in the coffin for support in the clubs. Therefore, my opinion is swayed into two directions. For the masses, once dance and top 40 stations get their jocks on this, it has all the potentials to be a hit. For DJs, I doubt they’ll care much about it even with the remixes, but if theirs a choice to grab between the cd single or 12” and you have a cdj, go straight for the cd release. It has all the mixes, plus radio friendly edits, and I’ve been told that the ambient mix and the formula pop mix won’t see the light of day on a thick slab of vinyl. O yea, btw, remember to have fun.