Staff Pick: Favorite Summer Albums
OK, so A Song Across Wires was technically released mid-August, but let’s not get hung up on semantics. Brian Transeau, in my mind, deserves a lot more praise and acclaim than he’s had since dance music went vogue. Put it this way: The man could produce a boy band song and I’d buy it in a heartbeat. I know, because he has.
Transeau’s ninth studio album, A Song Across Wires, delivers a leaping-into-the-middle-of-the-dance-floor boom in every track; his toys are the myriad of sounds synthesized by a combination of younger innovative producers and his own mastery from nearly twenty years of music-making experience. Tracks like “Letting Go” and “Calling Your Name” (featuring some local Austin flavor from Tritonal) bring a lighter, more melodic version of dubstep that gently rises and falls while still packing a punch before blitzing over house beats with wild squelches and electronic screams on “Tomahawk.” BT then takes his audience for a wild ride in the cosmos with the ambient textures in “Skylarking.”
But the real gems on here are the full-fledged vocal tracks, which give the feeling that you’ve dialed into God’s radio station. I already knew that “Must Be The Love” was a slice of perfection, but I was struck equally hard by “Stem The Tides” and “Lifeline.” And let’s not forget my favorite piece on the record, “City Life,” which combines two of my favorite things: BT and K-pop (Korean pop), a musical mash-up we all need more of in our lives.
Depending on what you may prefer, iTunes has a shortened version of the album, and Beatport (a dance music site) carries an extended version––each include a full hour-plus long mix. Regardless of your choice, this is a record worth bouncing around to, especially since BT will be in Austin November 9th performing live at Republic Live.
