EP Review: Yacht Club DJs ‘No. 1’

Words by Scenewave Australia - Published on April 26, 2014

Words by Roger Ma

No. 1 marks a first for Ballarat duo Yacht Club DJs. Over the past six years they’ve carved their name into the Australian live scene with their unique take on mash-ups. And after six years, they’ve decided that it’s now time to release some original music, starting with this four-track EP.

The EP is sort of a mixed bag. There’s only so much you can do in four songs, and Yacht Club DJs have tried to maximise this by give each track a completely different feel from the rest. Each track on No. 1 goes a different way and tries to explore another musical territory, which is possibly why it feels largely disjointed as a whole.

The opening track T.I.N.A, a rocky-glitchy dance anthem, is reminiscent of Daft Punk’s Robot Rock. The sample “This is not art, this is not rock, this is not music” is repeated throughout the four minute track, slowly building up to a nice breakdown.

Next up is the rap heavy Real Talk, featuring the vocals of Adelaide-born, Sydney-based alternative pop artist Fingertips, and it’s not bad. The raps are catchy and witty enough to complement Yacht Club’s heavy hitting beats really well.

The standout track is Undertow, which also is the lead single. It’s a solid dance track with distinctive floaty vibes, unlike the many festival/club bangers flooding most speakers and dance floors. Undertow has a great mixture of call-and-response vocals, a not-in-your-face drop, a catchy chorus and groovy bassline to keep you dancing. It’s one of the two standout tracks, both of which are those featuring vocals (the second being Real Talk.)

The EP finishes on a bit of weird note with Say Hello To Techno. A slow building techno track, which utilises a repetitive vocal sample “…say hello to techno.” Part retro, part early techno, all weird.

Yacht Club DJs are renowned for their live sets, which is why this EP doesn’t exactly feel like the Yacht Club DJs you know and love. The EP starts and ends strangely, but the middle tracks are a real treat. I imagine it would sound a lot stronger if these tracks were mixed into a proper live set.

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