Classixx - Faraway Reach (2016) [Hi-Res]

Second album by the Californian house producers Tyler Blake and Michael David featuring guest performances by How To Dress Well, T-Pain, Passion Pit, De Lux, Alex Frankel, Isles, Nonku, Harriet Brown and Panama. For fans of Odesza, DJDS, M83, Cut Copy, Holy Ghost, Daft Punk, Faraway Reach casts Classixx's young-but-nostalgic melodies and sublime chords in a more mature, restrained light, albeit no less lively and bright. Establishing themselves as producers of note on their debut LP (Pitchfork called them "great songwriters, too"), Faraway Reach delivers powerfully smooth and soulful jewels that are still decidedly their own - the Classixx signature is one that can't be traced. Their love of plaintive voices and disco-inspired grooves is as evident as ever, but this time around everything is a bit bolder, the cast is bigger, the melodies distilled into a higher potency - it's all just as good, but better. "On the first record, we wanted to include only people that were our friends, and have it be really personal" David begins, a thought Blake finishes: "This time we wanted to make a record with a lot of different kinds of vocals, to see if we could be the common thread". The album traverses locales, vocalists and inspirations. It's a fitting movement for the duo, from Venice beach to the mountains of South Africa and everywhere in between - a Faraway Reach.