2024 Repress
Since emerging on Golf Channel Recordings a decade ago, Payfone has built up a strong catalogue of singles that effortlessly blur the boundaries between slow-motion electronic disco, seductive songs and sun-splashed Balearic beats. While the project has appeared on a number of different labels, some of the best material – including the superb ‘Last Night In Sant Celoni’ and atmospheric ‘Sofian’ – has appeared on Leng.
‘I Feel You’, Payfone’s first outing on the long-serving label for two years, is another high-class mid-tempo offering tailor-made for loved-up dancefloors and intoxicated, sofa-bound listening sessions. Produced by Phil Passera and Jimmy Day in collaboration with Dominican Republic-born lyricist and vocalist Kyd Nereida, who also appears on the cover artwork, the song is a typically atmospheric, mid-tempo treat marked out by immersive chords, squelchy synth-bass, eyes-closed jazz guitar motifs (courtesy of guests J Felix and Royce Wood Jr.) and smoky sax (provided by Jordi Blanch). Add some bonus percussion hits and Nereida’s sassy lead vocal, and you have another superb, stirring and spine-tingling treat.
The accompanying remixes come from label co-founder Paul Murphy under his now familiar Mudd alias, marking the first time that he’s provided reworks for the imprint since 2015. His vocal and instrumental wrap Passera and Day’s original mix in layers of tactile, evocative musical goodness for a heady and intoxicating atmospheric excursion. Opting for a warming, soul-enriching vibe, Murphy adds slowly shifting synth sounds, flanged guitars, sun-soaked chords, simmering synth-strings and spacey electronics. By the time guest keyboardist Michele Chiavarini’s solos make their way into the sound space to – taking things up a notch emotionally in the process – you’ll be lost in Murphy and Payfone’s loved-up aural world. As remixes go, they’re as stunning as Payfone’s superb original mix.
