"It's always a hard game to remix a female vocalist in the house game, sure thousands of producers do it on a daily basis, but most of them equate to the aural equivalent of mass produced t-shirts. You know the ones with something scrawled in Helvetica aligned to the left with a full stop at the end. That tee design get's pulled off once in a while.
Which leads perfectly to Roberto Rodriguez' remix for New Yorker, Vanessa Dauo. Aptly titled, his rather lengthy remix which stretches more than ten minutes, further cements that Roberto is on constant top form. I don't think I've heard a remix from him in the past years that I didn't enjoy. Once In A While is certainly no exception, his trademark jumpy electric piano chords lay a solid groove which leads for more subtle variations throughout the track. As always his drum track is too tight to mention, melding analog grit and natural percussive elements.
Those powerful rhythms are capitalised in the gorgeous dub version, which is no doubt my pick of the entire record. Once In A While received the remix rub down from four producers including Roberto, but his renditions stand out like a sore thumb for those seeking dancefloor heat. The tribal vibes are turned up a notch, including the volume of all the percussion and lead melodies. There is a very delicate and majestic use of Daou's sultry vocals deep into the track during the break, with that aside this dub remix is designed for one purpose.
Once In A While is out now on Outsider Music. You can buy it digitally here."
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