- Music
- 30 Oct 15
Mick Pope tells us about his choice picks ahead of the RDS weekender.
You'll have seen them looking all iconic on the front cover of our current Metropolis special by now, but if you haven't picked up the issue yet, it's worth checking out for a much-needed catch-up with Le Galaxie frontman Michael Pope, talking Le Club success, touring the world and being glad to get back home.
Pope also took the time out ahead of his band's Saturday November 7 set in The RDS to give us his ultimate Metropolis mixtape.
Enjoy the Spotify playlist and the reasons behind the choices from the man himself.
(You can hear Spotify absentees Flight Facilities and Kormac below)
HARE SQUEAD - ‘BOP WITH IT’
“They played with us at our album launch and if you’ve seen them live you’ll know why I picked them. There’s only one band in Ireland like Hare Squead. They’re so talented and they’ve a real groove. They love performing in front of an audience and that really appeals to me too.”
CHIC - ‘GOOD TIMES’
“Chic were a band my Ma played all the time and I’ve been listening to this song before I even knew who Chic were. It was only when I got into adolescence that I found out who Nile Rogers was. ‘Good Times’ has one of the best basslines ever and those group vocals are awesome. A classic.”
TIGA - ‘BUGATTI’
“Weirdly, when I first heard the song I wasn’t impressed. I was like, ‘There’s nothing happening here,’ but then I saw the video and it made more sense and now I love it. It’s kind of like an earworm; it’s minimal but it’s also banging.”
KINK - ‘A SATURDAY IN NOVEMBER’
“‘A Saturday In November’ has a silky bassline and a beautiful female vocal with a dark reverb. It’s great. It’s one of those tracks that when you DJ it, the whole crowd responds strongly.”
HOT CHIP - ‘HUARACHE LIGHTS’
“It’s the kind of song that annoys me in some ways as I wish I’d written it. These lads make it sound so simple but you know it’s not. It has a slow groove, which I love. Dance music doesn’t have to be up past 120BPM and banging to be a really great disco-y song.”
FLIGHT FACILITIES - ‘YOU CAN CALL ME AL (REMIX)’
“I don’t know much of their original stuff but their remix of this Paul Simon classic is awesome! It feels more like a edit with a big bass sound put underneath than a remix, but honestly, if you’re DJ-ing in a club and you really want people to have a great time, that’s the one to put on.”
GIORGIO MORODER - ‘FROM HERE TO ETERNITY’
“The whole album is amazing but the title-track is especially good. When it starts off it almost seems like it doesn’t really know what it’s doing but then it kicks in and is phenomenal. It’s a timeless tune and has one of the best vocoder sounds I’ve ever heard.”
FOUR TET - ‘OPUS (REMIX)’
“I’m massively into this remix of an Eric Prydz tune called ‘Opus.’ It’s a real EDM banger and I’m not kidding- it’s insane. Four Tet subverted it and put two minutes of beats at the start and left the build-ups in tact in the middle of it for five minutes. Both versions are good but Four Tet’s remix is one of the best of the year.”
TODD TERJE - ‘RAGYSH’
“This was the first track of his that I got into. It’s a nine minute, weird tune that has a great groove and amazing arpeggios.”
KORMAC - ‘WAKE UP’
“I want to top and tail the list with Irish acts. Kormac’s music is so unusual - it doesn’t sound like it comes from Ireland. All his samples and hip hop grooves are killer. This is a great song and live, with the full brass band, it feels like you’re witnessing something contemporary but also something steeped in the past.”