Kraak & Smaak are a trio from the Netherlands I had only heard about thanks to Mark Knight and his Toolroom Knights podcasts. Over the past several months the original version and remixes of their song “The Future is Yours” saw significant play on Knight’s radio show, but it also saw play across DJ sets and mixes around the globe. I’ve got to say though, Amanda over at Magnum PR (the firm responsible for spreading the word about Kraak & Smaak along with artists like Avicii, Axwell, Gramatik, DJ Shadow, and plenty more) receives points for her compelling email from earlier this month describing Chrome Waves as Hot Natured 2.0 in the subject. Knowing what style of music Hot Natured puts together I opened up the email and read:
“Kraak & Smaak’s forthcoming LP Chrome Waves (10/28, Jalapeno Records) serves up slick, synthetic house music with a warm and sanguine disco feel. Scuba gave the Dutch electronic trio’s new jawn a “4/5″ and Tensnake pronounced it ‘Sick!’, so you know it’s real”.
Well I was in the mood for some Nu-Disco and soulful House music on that particular day and boy did I make the right call to check out Chrome Waves (thanks Amanda!).
The 11-song effort is a brilliant work of art. Chrome Waves is lighthearted, funky, danceable, melodic, and contains zero songs that I skip over. I’d classify the LP as Nu Disco and Indie Dance with elements of Funk and Deep House intertwined. “Good For the City”, for example, reminds me of something the guys in Chromeo might turn out – everything from the 80s synths to the bass line to the vocals by Sam Duckworth. Another one of my favorite songs from Chrome Waves is “The Upper Hand” featuring Capitol A. Instead of the vocalists singing on this one they are rapping, which almost reminds me of a Jurassic 5 tune. “The Upper Hand”, thanks to the rhyming, has a little more edge than, say, a song like “Where You Been”. If you haven’t heard the lead single “The Future Is Yours”, it rounds out my top-3 from the album (although “F.A.M.E.” is pretty damn good… and when I say top-3 I mean they are ultimately the crème de la crème). The pianos in “The Future Is Yours” takes me back that golden House sound found so often in 90s tracks, and the vocals are incredibly catchy.
The entire album can be purchased from Kraak & Smaak’s website HERE. You can read the interview THUMP did with the boys HERE. I highly recommend you sit down and listen to this album in its entirety… or take it on a road trip… either way it’s a must-have.