[.ca] V3 Beach House

Return to the Beach, Hed Kandi Style.:
"Beach House" is simply too good a compilation to be played only during the summer months at the beach. This collection of laid-back house is an excellent collection that can be played after dark, indoors, or to spice things up at a dinner party. We get warm grooves, soulful vocals, Latin and African influences, and mellowed-out beats. In other words, this ain't no "Totally Dance." Tracks of note on Disc 1 are "Believe" by Soldiers of Twilight, an impressive cover of the Bee Gees' "How Deep is Your Love" by Lazy Grace, and the favorite club staple "Lazy" by the David Byrne side project X-press 2. On Disc 2, Miguel Migs (known for his contribution to a couple of the Naked Music collections) shines in "Brand New Day" and the great closer "Black Water" by Octave One works pretty well. Note: this is NOT a mix CD. I thought the tracks would be blended in together like a DJ mix CD, but this is not the case. Still, it matters none to me. "Beach House" is a classy compilation that won't look out of place in your collection of dance music.

Hed Kandi does it again...:
I have to admit that I've been a bit disappointed with Hed Kandi releases this year. However, when I picked up this CD, I couldn't help, but be pleased once again. Hed Kandi has put together one of the best summer/Ibiza inspired compilations I've heard in a while. CD 1 is very laid-back. Perfect for lounging around the pool. Stand out tracks were Kaskade's "It's You, It's Me." This track makes its first appearance ever on this CD, and there's Lacy Grace's remake of the Bee-Gees "How Deep is your Love". However, my absolute favorite track on CD 1 and possibly on the entire CD has to be Solu Music feat. Kimblee's "Fade". "Fade" is deep, mellow house at its most sublime. Things start to speed up a bit on towards the end of CD 1 with Nick Holder's "Summer Daze" (another fave track) and X-Press 2's hilarious track "Lazy". What better way to spend time on the beach than to be "Lazy". However, Hed Kandi could have done without the last track by Bent, "Always". "Always" is a good example of overkill in electronic dance music. This track has been overplayed to exhaustion. I just yawned and skipped back to the beginning of CD 1 when I heard this track yet again. On the mostly uptempo CD 2, Miguel Migs with "Brand New Day" and Malena's "Con Migo" grab my attention, but the real jewel of CD 2 is "Black Water" by Octave One. This is a real dancefloor mover with an infectuous Afro-groove and heavenly vocals and chorus. Hed Kandi is still one of the best house labels out there. I love the stylish artwork of their CDs, but the music lives up to the packaging. It's really nice that Hed Kandi makes unmixed and full-length versions of house tracks more accessible to the club-music listening public. Getting these track individually in a DJ music shop is difficult and expensive. No longer am I losing my mind because I'm trying to find the full version of a track I heard only a snippet of on a mixed compilation CD or in a club. This is why I'm not lowering my rating of this CD due to the track "Always". As much as that track now bores me, it's good that others who like it can get the full version with more ease. Whatever your taste in electronic dance music, you can't go wrong with Hed Kandi.

Awesome...:
This is yet another must have Hed Kandi compilation! You can't find good soulful house on any other comp cd. A couple tracks that I guarantee you will have at deafening levels, are Kaskade's "It's You, It's Me," Solu's "Fade", Octave One's "Black Water," and Malena's "Con Migo." Other notable tracks are, "Summer Daze" by Nick Holder, "Brand New Day" by Miguel Migs and "How Deep is Your Love" by Lazy Grace. (Remake of Bee Gees song). If you're a house head, this album won't disappoint!

3.5 stars for sugary-sweet vocal house and disco:
What is it? Deep, sugary-sweet vocal house on one disc, disco on the other, all in unmixed form for this, the third installment of increasingly-prolific label Hed Kandi's most popular series Beach House. And? Good concept and all, but where's the sand? Most of the material locks the Latin percussion away for romantic nighttime tunes (Miguel Migs "Brand new Day," Julius Papp "A Thousand Years") certainly not aimed for friendly loafing on an afternoon. That leaves Malena, DJ Chus, an aptly named Holder classic "Summer Daze," and the vibrant Ibadan mix of rain-on-my-parade queen Beth Orton's "Central Reservation" to carry the concept - tunes that have traveled everywhere for three years now. But? There's still some delectable cuts here. Ashley Beedle of X-press 2 fame irons out the jilting tempo of Bent's original "Always" for a piano-led anthem floating a beguiling old-record vocal. Which makes up for his cack "Lazy." Meanwhile Lazy Grace cover a song correctly, as the Bee Gees' "How Deep is Your Love" receives the dancing queen treatment to wondrous effect. Jon Cutler's relaxed "You Groove Me" has the hook you'll remember most when it's all done, while Octave One's "Blackwater" is indeed, the strings-techno uplifting jewel worthy of the 2002 buzz. Like all the rest of Hed Kandi's releases, there's a handful of must-haves, some duds, and a large middle range of pleasant-enough goodies. Beach House may not meet its intended concept, but the music carries this through for a worthy release.

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