With her new album Dust poised for release in May, Ellen Allien has already started sprinkling her
fairy dust over dancefloors far and wide again. However, in order to appease the waiting hordes just
for the moment, the BPITCH CONTROL boss is giving the world an advance single release – a little
taste, you might say, of what is to come on the LP in May. “Flashy Flashy” is the name of the track,
and that’s exactly how it feels. It prances along with a light heart and a vague sense of bewilderment,
perfectly content and probably a little bit nuts. The bassline dips, the beat scuttles along, and the
synth glistens nervously between all kinds of curious crackling and fizzling, gradually causing the
contours of your surroundings to blur. But why would you want to bring these shapes into focus? Ellen
glides through the night, tastes madness, breathes in the mist and holds her gaze on the glittering
coloured lights. She doesn’t even blink as her voice tells of fleeting encounters in flashes of the night,
of the unexplored depths of the rings around the eyes facing her, and of the voice of the pitched-down
alter ego she finds inside. A moment of inspired indifference. It’s all a game. It’s all a secret. And
yet it all makes sense. “Flashy Flashy” marks this perfect moment of existence which won’t be
grasped, won’t be captured in words. A moment that only ever exits as a blurred memory.
From the very first beat, Alexi Delano makes it clear that his take on the issue is less focused on
the playful rolling around in this nocturnal chaosmos and more on getting legs pumping. Keeping the
kick drum taut, the ARP ready for battle and the direction clearly fixed, he nevertheless adopts the
dreamy melodic parts from warped tape which instil the knee-wobbling excellence in the original. Yet
despite dropping in intermittent rave signals, he keeps it light and fluffy in his own way and certainly
doesn't give in to the obvious temptation of delivering a hit for the masses.
Finally, Nicolas Jaar, who is close to untouchable in the discipline of house right now, takes a similar
approach to his previous releases on Wolf + Lamb and opts for the classic virtues of introspection:
noble simplicity and quiet grandeur. His perfectly programmed drums roll on absolutely effortlessly,
laying their organic depth and percussive elegance beneath the heart-warming melody line and
explaining the world of the here and now in the best way possible. When the soul-charged voice
interpreting Ellen’s lyrics begins its gentle, delicate flight, you know the end has come for even the
last pairs of feet on the dancefloor. This is without doubt a final track to close the set of your life.