Kevin Yost // Persistance [Lost & Found]
Guy J’s Lost and Found label began in superb fashion with the summer release of a track of the same name, both J’s original and the remix by Sahar Z and Guy Mantzur being of extremely high quality. With that in mind, I was looking forward to the next release on the imprint anyway, but was even more intrigued when I saw the track was by the American Kevin Yost, a hugely prolific purveyor of deep house – given Guy J’s progressive house leanings, I was very interested to hear not only what he saw in the original, but what he would add to it with his own considerable production skills on the remix.
Yost’s original doesn’t waste any time in getting going, the track beginning with quite a lengthy stride, and a very assured and confident one at that – the bassline also has spring in its step, and that alongside crisp beats and a lovely detuned arpeggio had me nodding my head in immediate approval. As we move through the first couple of minutes a complex collage of vocal snatches gradually rises and falls in the background, before the arrival of the main vocal – this first appears from the distance, sounding muffled and muted, but gradually comes into focus. Things bounce along nice and gently into the main break, where the vocal continues as digital interference rises up around it and the bassline persists, before all elements reach a crescendo – when the beats return those confident strides have become a full blown swagger, and I am suitably impressed. It is nice stuff overall – I am not overly in love with the vocal but the track does need it, and as it sounds like it is (and may well be) from a different era entirely, it plays very nicely against the very current production surrounding it.
I am very sorry to report that it is Guy J who lets the side down here, I did not find his remix involving at all. It begins with the aforementioned interference and sounds like it may have more urgency than the original, but it is a false dawn – it does pick up some more momentum after a very uneventful first 3 minutes, before the vocal makes an appearance in a similar fashion to the original, but is used much more sparingly this time round. The deep dark bass notes are nice, but are not enough to sustain interest over the considerable running time – it does have its better moments when the beats return after long builds, but it’s really just a sense of relief that something different has happened, as opposed to any real release of tension. I think the track tries to be hypnotic and moody, but really just comes across as petulant to me – Guy J is a producer of supreme talent, but has missed the mark here as far as I’m concerned.
Still, the impressive original means that he can be very happy with his label’s output thus far.
Release Date: Out Now
Words: Stevie Reid
