Black$ea Não Maya - "Rapture (Remix)"

The scene is midtown Manahattan. The year is 2001 and a scourge grips New York city as a whole. Danger has arrived - but rather than take on the familiar form of cannibalistic humanoids dwelling underground, this threat is subtle. It would appear that the cause for concern is indistinguishable from terrorized civilians. No hyperbole is intended. Simply put, the untrained eye is apt not to notice the beast at bay.

Oddly enough, iiO is the hero needed as well as the danger feared.

Of course, the reality of fall 2001 was much more dramatic; not to mention devoid of the mental holiday dance parties provide. But as the real world underwent tangible change, music too became susceptible to rising tides.

Janet Jackson, Ja Rule, J.Lo's initial run, and even Shaggy dominated the Hot 100, calling into question whether surviving the Y2K scare was worth it. Meanwhile iiO was dominant in its own right. Markus Moser and Nadia Ali released "Rapture (Taste So Sweet)," a vocal trance seasoned with enough house flavors to taste nearly like disco. As such, the tune - a testament to turn of the century preferences - best heard in a Molli time capsule. But with a range beyond Ibiza, the song peaked at #2 on the club charts; amidst an 8 week residency. So even though Eminem would go on to proclaim, "It's over, nobody listens to techno," a few months later, the track made an impact. In 2010 Avicii  would go on to remix "Rapture." At which point it can be assumed the giant, robot-clone Nadia from iiO's original was defeated by a sexy Brit and the sidekick from this Austin Powers audition.



Despite the available alternatives where 2001 club tracks are concerned - primarily The Chemical Brothers's "It Began In Afrika" -  Black$ea Não Maya shared a remix of "Rapture" last week. What follows is a strict re-creation: a kuduro/batida track crafted around Nadia Ali catchy hook. Contrary to the tracks featured in the "Tourner la page" post, "Rapture (Remix)" does not sound forced. In adjusting to the faster tempo, the singing is tweaked; coincidentally the resulting pitch resolves the originally nasal tone. And amidst the hi-hat and snare heavy Angolan rhythm, Western dance music's influence is not lost. The result is a testament to cross-over. An initial climax is built with organ, and high pitched electro-house synth is heard later. Meanwhile, the original melody is preserved through xylophone and guitar, both reminiscent of EdiCerelac - delightfully imprecise. With brief :15 and :30 sections, the structure is that of a compressed pop song: verse, chorus, bridge, verse, chorus. An all-around formidable effort.

- John Noggle