Eric C. Powell Puts Together A Massive Remix Album
A release from Eric C Powell and Andrea Powell manages to bring out a completely refreshing but vintage-sounding, '80s style pop tonality that captures a cinematic vastness but also a bit of drive with ethereal tones and flowing vocals.
Escape: The Getaway (Remixed) is a record that features the single "The Getaway", which does indeed capture that wonderfully cinematic and classic style, but the record comes with an album's worth of remixes, each one touching on a different approach.
This was a brilliant idea because the original version of the track itself is almost begging for a set of remixes. It does have that electronic vibe, utilizing some great synths and that little hint of drive that I mentioned earlier amongst all that expansive tonality, and I'm so glad that they brought in these producers to do remixes of the track because every single one of them stands on their own two feet as singles.
Each one is completely different from the next, but I'd certainly do have some favorites.
Now, before I get started with that, I have to say that the original version is indeed one of my favorites. The original track holds something special.
Brilliant harmonies, flowing and graceful vocals, that theatrical underbelly it all comes through with a damn near perfect aesthetic in the original version.
Let's go through some of my favorite remixes.
First of all, the Graflex Italo Remix hits home for me as well. This remix adds a little bit more edginess with different styles of synths and keys. The synthesizers have a harder feel to them, bringing out a sort of outrun undertone at times, but it also has this classic Miami Vice style since that is happening throughout it, bringing it right back to that classic '80s, nostalgia-boasting style.
So, obviously, Graflex understood the mission.
Keeping it true to its roots in that classic soundscape but bringing it into a harder tone with a bit more drive.
Then we have the Nature of Wires Remix, which still has this amazing sense but more pads so that it keeps to that vastness in a sort of spacious feel. The beats are a bit heavier here, and the vocals are coated in this kind of vocoder effect, bringing a slightly robotic feel to the mix.
I love this version as well because it just hits with a certain vibe.
Then we have the Cyborgdrive Remix, which, to me, has one of the most radio-friendly approaches. It keeps to this very current pop style and brings different textures to the table with its instrumentation, along with a lot of attention to detail to the effects and editing of the vocals.
You can tell there was a lot of thought that went into how this one played out, and a lot of time went into detailing those textures and how they sounded on top of each other.
I love that these artists and producers were able to portray their own personal style and approach to a track that already had so much character embedded in it.
Some tracks hit more of a funk vibe, some more of a synthwave or electronic feel, and some feel more robust, but whatever you get, it's got its own style, and because of that, it makes the record feel fresh the entire way through.
You know it's the same song, obviously, but the approach always has its own aesthetic, and it makes the record diverse.
Each remix is very well produced, and this is one of the first remix albums where I can honestly say listening through the entire record is the only way to go.
Because they have such brilliant producers remixing this single, the record takes you on a bit of a journey, and it feels like an escape.
The whole thing is this great, semi-theatrical, cinematic, character-riddled escape.
I think music like this is meant for that. It's meant to be escaped into so that you are pulled away from your surroundings and put into a different world for a bit.
I would also suggest listening to the record with headphones on, just because again, there are a lot of layers and textures going on and all the different versions of the song, so each remix has something that you may not pick up on the first time around.
Listening with headphones lets the music completely surround you, and it feels good to be engulfed in this album.
This was incredibly well done. One of the best remix records I've heard in a very long time, and out of eight tracks, no two are alike.
That's just not something you normally get from a remix record.
Take a deep dive into this one as soon as you can, and again, check this out from start to finish. Going all the way through this is the best way to soak it all in.
It's about half an hour in length. You have the time for that. Pop on those headphones and listen.
