By Rachel Skotarczyk | September 25th, 2012
House music is not dependent on great lyrics, but it’s often the lyrics that makes one tune a cut above the next.
Swedish duo, Mercury, are expert lyric scouts. Their 2009 hit, a remix of Le Le’s “Breakfast“, stood out because of the quirky hip-hop vocals, while a 2012 release, “Old Man’s House“, is one of my recent favorites because of the unique choice addition of Southern Gospel vocals. It’s memorable, attention grabbing stuff. Their production is frank, bass-driven house music with a refreshingly minimal approach. Seemingly, their secret is in the “vocal sauce.”
Maybe an ear for great vocals is what brought Mel, a former hip-hop DJ, and Simon, a drummer immersed in UK 2-step, together. Whatever the case, their style has garnered the attention of top DJs and top labels, and they continually pump out great tunes. Their remix of Junior’s “I Don’t Listen Much” is a dance-tastik vocal romp, with a proper house backbone. If “I Don’t Listen Much” doesn’t get stuck in your head, you probably weren’t listening — much. Oh yeah, we just went there.
Find more Mercury, past and present, via Beatport.