Dirty South – darko

There are few names in Dance Music that have been able to stand the test of time. One of the few that has is Dirty South. Having produced & remixed for everyone from Kaskade to Snoop Dogg, the Melbourne base producer has once again proven his worth. While usually being known for his melodic anthems, Dirty South takes a sharp left with ‘darko’. The sonic direction he takes us on in ‘darko’ is no “City Of Dreams” with Alesso, but it is still melodic, and is chalk-full of anthems nonetheless.

Earlier this year, South promised us a second album. He did this after already  having released his album  ‘XV‘ in February of this same year. Well, it goes without saying that the man has finally delivered. He has done so in the form of his new 8 – track record titled ‘darko. If you’re a fan of artists such as Yotto, Lane 8, or even Rüfüs Du Sol, you might enjoy this album. The album is full of brooding synths, playful arpeggios, dirty basses, and stellar sound design. What more could we ask for?

darko

In familiar Dirty South fashion, each track is different in its own way. Despite this, the 8-track LP is truly one cohesive body of work. Each track on the track list can without a doubt able to hold its own if it were to be released as a single. As I write this, the track that I literally caught myself dancing to was ‘Rossa’. 

However, don’t discount the rest of the album off of that alone. The opening track ‘Temps’ is worth a listen, as it truly opens up the album, luring us in with short playful melodies and beautiful chord swells. It also features some great brass stabs, which I think are pretty awesome.

Dirty South takes a unique approach in the creation of ‘Kino’ by doing his favorite thing, which is to:

 “…make these long “4-chord riffs” and making them work for duration of the song – or at least most of it.”

Casetta

While ‘Casetta’ was birthed from the inspiration he received from a new delay plugin he got got, which is called “Carbon Copy” and is by u-He. ‘Konda” was created from a “preset sequence” that South flipped, and flopped, and cut & chopped until it became his own, and is definitely one of the groovier tracks on the album. Lava is neat, as it comes in strong, and fast, commanding a vibe that we can’t help but vibe away to.

Dirty South went on record, stating that the final track of the LP ‘Corda’, is in his opinion, the most beautiful track on the album. In an interview with Billboard, Dirty South stated the following when talking about ‘Corda‘:

“To me, it’s the most beautiful track on the album, and I wanted to end the album with it. The chords evolve and harmonies build all throughout the track to create this really cool tension. It gets a little crazy at times but still feels patient, and there is space for everything.”

Regardless of what track you think is the best, they are all worth a listen, or 5.  ‘darko’ is out now on Dirty South’s own Phazing Records, and can be streamed below, Enjoy.

Dirty South – darko | DOWNLOAD