Pleasurekraft & Green Velvet - Skeleton Key (Format B Remix)

Pleasurekraft feat. Green Velvet

Skeleton Key (Remixes)

Great Stuff Recordings

Producers should approach remixing a big track with trepidation. That’s why you’ve got to enlist only the bravest, most talented minds to tackle such a task. This year’s biggy from the troublesome trio of Pleasurekraft and Green Velvet, Skeleton Key, is back with a phenomenal package of reworkings.

There aren’t enough superlatives to describe the irresistibly bouncy techno sounds of Format:B, and as ever they come up trumps with their raucous remix. Wobbly, descending bass creates a mischievous mood, with plenty of their trademark flourishes on display across this romp of a rework. Cowbells, haunting rhythms, tripped-out vocal FX… tick, tick, tick. Seriously naughty stuff.

Zoo Brazil has other ideas, however. He goes for a sleeker, more darkly-tinged re-rub, all brooding and full of dissonant, discordant synth sounds. The vocal takes centre stage, while the Swede’s production prowess creates a throbbing, intense backdrop for it to work around. It’s a hypnotic twist on the original for lovers of deeper, moodier tech.

Damn Kids’ remix represents a serious departure for Great Stuff. More aligned with the experimental post-dubstep bass music scene than the house and tech the label is known for,  it takes the original to a druggy, atmospheric place, full of broken beats and half-time interludes. With techy splashes, it’s more akin to something you’d find on Scuba’s Hotflush Recordings or Martyn’s 3024 imprint.

Bontan plum for a cheeky workout that is sympathetic to the charms and style of vocal, with dancehall style snare rhythm interludes breaking up the stripped-back and infectious main sections. It’s deep, yet energetic. Understated, but engrossing.