Tag: Dada

Dragonette feat. Dada – Sweet Poison

“An absolutely brilliant vocal, perfectly delivered.”

Tim: Press play, enjoy.

Tom: One extra comma would make that sentence so different.

Tim: Oh, Tom.

Tim: Since the last time they combined forces, I’ve actually been able to find out who this Dada guy is – he also goes by the name Matt Schwartz, mostly working behind the scenes as a writer and producer, with songs ranging from Wamdue Project’s King Of My Castle to, erm, Joe and Jake’s You’re Not Alone.

Tom: That is an eclectic mix of pop songs, and a mix that spans decades. Well done to him.

Tim: Occasionally it seems he jumps to the front, such as here, where the combination is very, very pleasant. I could list the reasons – particularly for me, the “two wrongs don’t make a rii-ihgt” in the pre-chorus and, of chorus, that glorious “feeeeel” vocal – but really I’d rather just keep listening to this.

Tom: It is an absolutely brilliant vocal, perfectly delivered. Crucially, it’s one that not every singer could do: frequently we find tracks like this where the vocalist could be switched out with no great effect on the music. Here? Not so much.

Tim: One of my favourite tracks of the past few months, I’d say, so I’m just sticking it on repeat.

Tom: I wouldn’t go that far: it’s certainly pleasant, and a cut above what we normally have here, but it’s not going on repeat for me. And that’s down to the melody and the composition: it’s beautifully produced, but I just don’t like the song. Not even the greatest vocalist can help with that.

Dada, Paul Harris & Dragonette – Red Heart Black

“Some sort of subliminal advertising for Swedish beef?”

Tim: Her (by which I mean Martina) off Dragonette does a good feature, doesn’t she? Aside the obvious Hello for Martin Solveig, she was also the vocalist on Galantis’s two tracks.

Tom: Wait, really? Oh! That makes so much sense. How did I not notice that voice?

Tim: And now this. (It’s only online as part of this mix, but it’s the first track, starts a minute in.)

Tom: And an advance warning: there’s a really obnoxious sputtering-noise ident at the start of this: headphone users, beware.

Tom: Oh, those vocals! You’re absolutely right: she does a Good Feature. But let’s talk about the music behind it: this is really good, from the calm sections during the chorus, to the acoustic guitar that gets added in, to the sheer amount of constant, well-produced electronica behind it. Although…

Tim: I think we’ve reached the same the point – let’s get straight to that there elephant in the room, or rather the cow in the room that inexplicably makes itself known on a couple of occasions. I don’t know what it’s doing there, I’d be surprised if anybody does really, unless it’s some sort of subliminal advertising for Swedish beef, but there you go.

Tom: Yes, it’s an odd one, isn’t it? But given how strong the pure instrumental sections are, I’m not going to complain.

Tim: Absolutely not. And I’m going to be honest: I know nothing about most of the people behind this track – both Dada and Paul Harris are ungooglable, being primarily known respectively an art movement and a 1970s musician. Still, it’s a decent track, enjoyable enough, and I’ll never turn down some more Dragonette.