London based Chocksy (aka David James) is an eclectic artist who has set out to deliver his own take on electronic music. Blending elements as diverse as techno, new wave and indie pop, it’s all about vintage-sounding drum machines, lush synth pads and colorful melodies, with influences from the 1980’s including bands like Soft Cell, Shannon and Pet Shop Boys, as well as Italian Disco and Acid House music. ” I love retro stuff, even down to the old fashioned ‘one armed bandits’ you find at funfairs and old seaside towns ” he says.
Chocksy will soon be releasing his 5-track debut Ep, while the lead single, “Your Town”, officially out through Platform Records on the 28th of April, is already doing the rounds on Youtube.
We grabbed an anticipated listen to the Ep which manages to meld together vocal, lyrical, and musical excellence harking back to the 80s British synthpop era. It is choc-a-bloc full of throbbing, delicate, fever-pitched rhythms which flows together seamlessly. From the opening number, and choice single “Your Town”, to the proclaiming “I Know You Want Me”, to the shameless and extravagant “On The Cam”, and “Dress Up” to the grand finale of “One Night Disco”, Chocksy has crafted a collection of nearly every 80’s emotion represented, every retro-synth sound utilized. It is marvelous how Chocksy has recreated a golden era of music without sounding rhetorical.
The style of music, though originating from what may at first seem like a dated genre is absolutely refreshing, confronted with current synth-based pop. However it is the quality of its production, lyrics, and organic synthesizer sounds which propels it into the stratosphere of sublime pop recording.
The Ep and the single both evoke a particular time and place in pop culture, as Chocksy refines the catchy, beat-driven synth-pop music of the 80s, smack bang in the middle of the hip hop revolution.The great thing is that the he retains intelligence and respectability while recreating a classic theme.
Chocksy delivers music that is both very danceable and listenable in the tradition of synth-based dance pop. The most pleasing part about the tracks though is that it fuses together elements of the past with current trends.
If you loved bands like Human League, Visage, Pet Shop Boys, OMD , The Thompson Twins or even Depeche Mode, you’ll certainly enjoy this latest work by Chocksy. Sure, he isn’t going to solve world peace, or make you think about anything extraordinarily deep, but I suspect doesn’t want to. Chocksy’s goal is to make unabashed synth-based dance music, and he succeeds perfectly, and nowhere is that more apparent than in “Your Town”.
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