- Did you ever notice how great '80s movies involve either A) scenes of riding downhill (the waterslide in Goonies, the mine cart and the inflatable boat drop in Temple of Doom, the shield-toboggan in Willow, etc.) or B) some kind of transcendental motif of soaring through the clouds ala Flight of the Navigator (rad metallic Pee Wee Herman-voiced spaceship ride) and The Neverending Story (Atreyu! Falcor!)?
It's the second trope that interests Abakus, AKA Cinnamon Chasers, AKA Russell Davies. "I try to create music that gives me the vibe those classic films gave me as a kid," says the Kinks offspring in the press release accompanying this EP. There's a graduate thesis somewhere waiting to be written about how coming of age '80s movies were either about being swept downhill in an adult world beyond your control, or being lifted to great heights by a benevolent deity/flying guide/protector.
The disc contains four mixes of the same bouncing mid-tempo winner, "White Flag." The first version is a radio edit with clean vocals and more subdued instrumentals. The second iteration, "White Flag (Rubber Dub Club Mix)" adds some laser to the synths and thickens the low end, 'cuz, like, it's a club mix, yo. The third cut seems pretty damned close to the first. The disc ends with busier keyboard arpeggios and a melody that searches slightly further afield. As such, "White Flag" (Corrupting The Good Girl Mix) is the pick of the litter.
Digging in the childhood VHS back catalog for a palette of affecting images is nothing new in electronica—god knows enough has been written about Anthony Gonzales' exploration of John Hughes' zeitgeist on the latest M83 record, but what really stands out on this quartet of remixes is the total lack of irony, the innocence of the snapping snare and winged synths sweeping skyward. It's not the smartest, or even the sturdiest techno, but if you're looking for the sensation of, I dunno, riding your bike through the air in front of the moon with a friendly alien in the handlebar basket, this is probably the EP for you.
Tracklist01. White Flag (Radio version)
02. White Flag (Rubber Dub Club mix)
03. White Flag (Album version)
04. White Flag (Corrupting The Good Girl mix)