If modern hip hop & pop had a drug infused party in the 1980's
Funky Wav Bounce Vol. 1 is one of the first albums which combines genres of dance, pop and hip hop in an 80’s inspired fashion
Disclaimer: If you are looking for deep meaning rap lyrics or ‘proper’ EDM house music please leave now to save disappointment.
Funky Wav Bounces Vol 1 is the latest album from EDM superstar DJ Adam Richard Wiles, aka Calvin Harris. The album is the first album Harris has released since 2013’s Motion. The Scottish superstar exploded onto the world stage with his star studded album 18 months. That album set the tread of electronic dance house music dominating the charts.
The album contained endless high charting singles including ‘Bounce’, ‘Feel So Close’, ‘Let’s Go’, ‘We’ll Be Coming Back’, ‘Sweet Nothing’, ‘Drinking from the Bottle’, ‘I Need Your Love’ and ‘Thinking About You’, all of which, along with ‘We Found Love,’ featuring Rihanna, reached the top 10 of the UK Singles Chart, making 18 Months the first album in history to spawn nine top 10 singles. 18 launched Harris into international stardom becoming the highest paid DJ in the world along the way.
However Funky Wav Bounces Vol 1 sees Harris changing up things completely with a new fresh sound. The superstar DJ reportedly earns $300,000 a night so it is fair to say he can afford to take a risk. The album sees Harris move away from the electronically pumped dance hall sound which he had made his own. On this album Harris embodies 80's dance music, laid back raps with a sun-kissed vibe.
The album is only 10 tracks in length. However it is stacked with features from the biggest names in hip hop and pop, a list which included Future, lil Yatchy, Migos, ScHoolboy Q, Travis Scott, Nicki Minaj, Snop Dogg, John Legend, Katy Perry and Pharrell to name just a few. Unlike his competition (DJ Khaled) Harris manages to merge these artists together without it feeling forced or without shouting his name over every track numerous times.
The album contains many highlights from Frank Ocean’s addictive hook and chorus on the lead single ‘Slide’, to the old school Snopp Dogg rolling back the years on ‘Holiday’. ScHoolboy Q, PARTYNEXTDOOR and DRAM combine on ‘Cashout’ to produce a track which is best described as a 1980's dance hall beat with the usual drug using culture lyrics of Q and DRAM. ‘Uh, party like it’s 1980, Where the afro shiny and the girls all purty.’
A side note on the hook for ‘Slide’ when Frank Ocean sings, ‘I might
empty my bank account, and buy that boy with a pipe, buy that boy with a pipe.’ He is actually referring to Garçon à la Pipe (Boy with a Pipe) which is a Rose Period painting by Spanish artist Pablo Picasso.
The king of modern pop producing -Pharrell Williams - lends a hand to produce ‘Heatstroke’ and ‘Feels.’ These songs are the clearly most melodically on the album. Both of these songs are set to dominate pop charts for the Summer. The former containing a feature from mumble rap star Young Thug which is supervising addictive and audible .
Rollin the fourth single featuring both Khalid and Future is the most laid back track on the album with a modern dance take on the G-Funk California sound . The summer vibes are continued by Travis Scott on ‘Prayers Up’ featuring A-Trak. Jessie Reyez, the up and coming Canadian singer closes the album with ‘Hard to Love,’ combing her unique voice and a mellow guitar beat.
The album has its odd low point. The Nicki Minaj ‘Skrt On Me’ is not the worst Nicki track but is still poor in comparison to the rest of the album. Harris also makes us listen to annoying, unbearable Lil Yatchy on Kehlaini track ‘Faking it.’
However this doesn’t take away from the fact that Funky Wav Bounce Vol 1 is one of the first albums which combines genres of dance, pop and hip hop in a clearly 80's inspired fashion. Many fans of Calvin Harris will remember his early days in which he played instruments and sang live.
This album contains many songs which clearly show Harris’s ability as a musician. However unlike in 2008 Harris can now enlist the help of the world’s biggest stars to sing and rap on his music. The album contains singles which will no doubt be on repeat at every house party, session and BBQ for the Summer.
