After many months of working on their sophomore record and lengthy discussions about a strategy to follow and God knows what else, good news came during summer: L.A. wonder trio ASHRR finally have a home to release their second work, in the shape of 20/20 Vision Recordings, a British label specialized in electronic and dance music which is now home to legends A Certain Ratio and other important names such as Felix Dickinson.
The first reference by ASHRR in their new label is a four-track EP based on an excellent cover of The Romantics’ 1983 hit song “Talking In Your Sleep”. As you all will remember, The Romantics made a retro pop number with an uncomplicated yet effective chorus repeating the title.
In this case, ASHRR have kept the urban feeling of the original but replaced the guitar melodies with an electro structure and a nocturne feeling, thus following the tendency initiated with the first three singles of their forthcoming record, “Sunshine Low” (QRO review), “Bad Reasons” (QRO review) and “No Garden” (QRO review).
But it doesn’t end here. Just as with “No Garden”, the band has assembled some remixes, maximizing the impact of the single as Argentinian ace Fernando Pulichino provided them with three high-quality versions of the song: “The Deep Mix” – ideal for dancing into dawn – the catchy “Disco Dub Mix”, and the shorter “7-Inch Mix”, which is basically a remix of the cover with some clever mixing.
All in all, a new work by the L.A. trio that keeps their high-level output of the last two years. Some may say that a high level of releases is difficult to maintain, but the band has taken enough time to work and re-work their new tunes. The results we’ve heard foresee a complex yet accessible work by the Californians, an album that could well be one of the best of the year hands down.
Stream ASHRR’s Talking In Your Sleep EP here:
