Album Review: Classixx - Hanging Gardens

Classixx, formally known as Young Americans and made up of Michael David and Tyler Blake, have crafted a mellow debut album of soft electronica with a dreamy city limits kind of feel. The Los Angeles producer/DJ duo have an instrumental and smooth, post-production sound that is peppered with featured vocalists like US artist Nancy Whang and indie-pop Princeton singer Jesse Kivel.

A sparse ambience, combined with the familiar repetition of dance music occasionally renders Hanging Gardens monotonous and from the first track it feels like an homage to the '80s, with fuzzy synths and echoed snare beats; not quite Classixx's most believable sound.

Faring better is the grooving, bass-driven debut single, Holding On. The stuttering vocals, jungle beats and upbeat piano refrain make this track a chilled yet party-starting highlight and the recurrent line, “I've been holding on and I can't take it any more” is poignant despite the jubilant vibe of the song.

A few of the instrumental tracks are a joy, like Rhythm Santa Clara with its percussion and James Brown-esque sampled groans, while A Fax From The Beach is memorable with its windchime soundscape. An older single that's been floating around since 2009, I'll Get You is a familiar and welcome inclusion on the album. Featuring Denmark's Jeppe and another really popping bass guitar riff, it's the album's production centerpiece and includes an extraordinary dialogue mash-up.

The bass line is Classixx's greatest discovery this time around and when Jeppe sings “do you like bass, do you/do you like bass?” you'll most likely be nodding a solid affirmation.

While Hanging Gardens is not as impressive as its first single would have us think, there are addictive grooves and a minimalistic yet complex production to the record that makes it a definite worthwhile listen.