Spanning generations of disco, house, pop, and psychedelia, ‘The Broken House Project’ is the debut album from secretive, London-based producer GIVE LOVE. Loyal to the experimental spirit of sample culture, GIVE LOVE takes its name from the pure intent inherent to sample culture: to give back love to lost and forgotten records.
Running a gamut of approaches on their debut LP, ranging from expertly tweaked dancefloor edits to wildly creative classical flips, lethargic, Dilla-esque beats and celebratory sonic collage, cuts from the LP have already been heard on BBC 6Music’s ‘New Music Fix’ and from Jaguar on Radio 1, who declared previous single ‘Worthy’ to be “world class”. Now, the full spectrum of ‘The Broken House Project’ is unveiled just in time for the summer sunshine it basks in.
The result of many years of sample digging and clearance, the bleary-eyed soul vocal and birdsong of opening track ‘Sunshine’ underscores that ‘The Broken House Project’ will be a lifting journey for listeners, just as it has represented a major labour of love for the artist. Like tuning from an AM radio and into a brighter future, ‘In Your Mind’ slips into digital bliss, its lilting, tripping vocal drifting upon beautiful synthesis. And while many of GIVE LOVE’s finest samples are untraceable, flipped beyond recognition, ‘Weak Knights’ raises eyebrows with delight upon its first chord, transforming an iconic piano piece into a hazy garden of delight with little more than a simple breakbeat.
‘Worthy’ sees GIVE LOVE go for broke with the record’s most catchy and timeless tune, with a subtly optimistic sentiment launching you into an emotional journey. ‘Day Breaks’ transports listeners forward with a four-four rhythm underpinning a melancholy arrangement of contemporary deep house, bursting into breakbeat catharsis. ‘Almost Always’ catches aching feet in a billowing, authentically Balearic cloud.
‘The Most Climactic Part, The Strongest Part, The Funkiest Part Of The Record’ offers props to a legacy of true sample pioneers, cutting and chopping with appropriate glee’, before GIVE LOVE carves space to pay tribute to one of their key club influences on ‘French Touch’, an unapologetically jackin’ affair that blends heavy acid lines with the elegant vocals that represent the album’s beating heart.
‘This’, ‘My Heart Keeps Wandering’ and ‘Find Love’ make a romantic final stretch to the LP, distilling the diverse elements across the album into a spectacular, wide-eyed nu-disco conclusion.
“And now, a special treat… another song”, intones the voice at the beginning of ‘Another Song / Here For You / World Between Us’, kicking off a reprise, delivering no less than five, masterfully interwoven in a style that recalls the genre-spanning ‘plunderphonic’ creativity of The Avalanches, crossfading between energies. As such, ‘Peter and the Waltz’ offers a final moment of respite drawing ‘The Broken House Project’ to its soft, orchestral conclusion.
