Dave Seaman – Nightfalls (Selador)


With 3 years and 50 releases under its belt, Steve Parry and Dave Seamanโ€™s Selador label swaggers past GO demanding ยฃ200, with the 50th release coming from Dave Seaman himself backed by remixes from Lee Van Dowski, Chymera, and OC & Verde.

โ€˜Nightfallsโ€™ sees Dave Seaman once again revisting the vocals from the Ananda Projectโ€™s classic โ€˜Cascades of Colourโ€™, which will be familiar from his mash-up with Charlie Mayโ€™s glorious, trancey remix of Mandalayโ€™s โ€˜Deep Loveโ€™ on GU16. In line with the shift of focus suggested by the change of title, Dave Seaman sets out here to build the vocal into a serious bit of after-dark gear, with brooding pianos, growling bass parts, and the kind of hypnotic, slow and percussive build weโ€™ve been hearing from Selador artists like Show-B and D-Nox & Beckers recently. Itโ€™s the bass that gives the track most of its sheer presence, though itโ€™s nicely offset by lighter chiming pianos, while the second half hits even harder with metallic percussive loops.

Genevaโ€™s Lee Van Dowski steps up next, his remix kicking off with a strong, propulsive bassline backed by solid kicks, before he teases in the vocal and piano to great effect. Thereโ€™s an even slower build to the breakdown here than on Dave Seamanโ€™s original, but the driving, biting sounds intensifying under the vocal are more than reward enough, and they set up a killer drop.

My pick of the four versions comes from a master of melodic deep techno and house, Chymera. He spins mesmerising sounds over crisp percussion, before hooking the listener with Dave Seamanโ€™s delicate pianos, a pulsating bassline, and weaving organ-like melodies. The remix takes on a dreamy quality to the remix as lazy, hazy pads engulf the vocals, while the second half plays up the metallic sounds from Dave Seamanโ€™s original to lend a bit more urgency โ€“ though it does so without compromising the vibe thatโ€™s been built up to that point. What a master-class in remixing this is.

Manchester-based duo OC & Verde ramp the energy levels right back up, with a pacey, high-octane tech-house interpretation of Dave Seamanโ€™s track, weaponizing his bassline over a busy percussive groove. What really makes the remix work, though, is the surprise acid melodies that emerge out of the breakdown, giving a nice balance of sweetness and tension.

Congratulations to Steve Parry and Dave Seaman, who have taken Selador from a standing-start to one of the most essential and distinctive labels around in a remarkably short space of time. Package 50 nicely demonstrates why theyโ€™ve been so successful, with a range of quality interpretations of Dave Seamanโ€™s track that will appeal to DJs of all kinds of different musical persuasions. Itโ€™s Chymera all the way for me personally, though โ€“ itโ€™s a gem.


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