Gavin Froome

Vancouver's Gavin Froome deserves praise for his delivery of an incredibly deep, varied and listenable debut. It's no easy task for an artist to create an album of house instrumentals that rivals the many compilations found out there, but Froome has managed mightily. "I like what I'm producing because it's kind of dirty and low-fi," he says. "Some of it's polished and phat, and other stuff is more stripped down and in your face gritty." The latter is exemplified by Froome's biggest track to date "Fly Me to Brasil," found here as an edited version of the original twelve-inch. This edgy slice of tech-house is funky as hell, with a bass line that won't quit, infectious Brazilian rhythms, and solid beats — all resulting in a song that was found on many a top international DJ's play list. Another side of Froome is audible with the super sweet deep house pieces "Architect" and "Five & A Half," the album's opener that captures attention with its dubby bass line, gorgeous chords and skilful production. "I've been trying to make songs that represent a mood, and to have things that are a little more subtle than, say, ‘Fly Me to Brasil’ which is just banging from the get go," acknowledges the producer. "It's important to have tracks that have a little more depth and subtlety to them. Some of them are banging and some are mellow, but I think they work quite well together." Indeed they do, with the album flowing mid-section from the jazz-guitar flavoured down-tempo of "Closer to Leaving" into the heavy, straight up 4/4 track "Knee Deep," and back to the classic warehouse sounds of "It Is Time," an uplifting yet melancholic piece. Gavin's disco leanings are represented elsewhere, with "Disco Speciality" and, particularly, "Malibu" demonstrating his fresh take on this staple dance floor sound; his builds are artfully timed, percussion unpredictable, and grooves incredibly visceral. It comes as no surprise that Froome says of his approach to producing songs, "I don't really go back to adjust them; if I don't get it right the first time, it's gone. I'm terrible that way. I don't like to lose the original vibe." Froome is correct to trust his instincts; the vibe here is solid, from start to finish.