KEYS N KRATES SHARE ANIMATED VIDEO FOR ‘ORIGINAL CLASSIC’ (FEAT. JUICY J, CHIP & MARBL)
ORIGINAL CLASSIC LP OUT NOW
LAST GANG RECORDS
Following the release of their album Original Classic via Last Gang Records in November, Toronto trio Keys N Krates shared a new Bird Peterson-animated video for the Juicy J, Chip and Marbl-featuring Original Classic’ track. The LP which was named one of the Best Dance Albums of 2021 by Billboard and one of the Top 20 Electronic Albums of 2021 by Thissongissick, contains previously released singles ‘Pull Up’ featuring fellow Canadian and Polaris Prize-winning artist Haviah Mighty, the Bibi Bourelly collaboration ‘Take It Off’, ‘Brazillian Love Song’, and ‘Original Classic’ itself.
In support of the album, Keys N Krates is currently out on their 20-date headlining Original Classic Tour, featuring DJ sets from the group and upcoming stops in Chicago, Seattle and New York City, among others. Tickets on sale here.
Speaking about the new video, Keys N Krates shares: "We knew that we wanted to bring out the fun aspect of this song and accentuate how everyone involved is a character in their own right. We linked up with Bird Peterson, who's an incredible animator. On the first call with Bird we thought the process was going to be really collaborative and that we were going to have all these great ideas to feed him to do his thing with. Instead, he basically said, "this is the treatment" and proceeded to describe this whole 60's style cereal commercial world he had created in his head that involved Juicy J leading children (us) into mischief. After dying of laughter, we all just said "ya go do that," and this is what came out. We're very happy to have found Bird and his insane talents."
Original Classic Tracklisting
1. Crescendo
2. Original Classic (feat. Juicy J, Chip, Marbl)
3. Brazilian Love Song
4. Siento Mi Destino (feat. Lido Pimienta)
5. Presentando
6. Chopped Soul
7. Take It Off (feat. Bibi Bourelly)
8. Take It Off Reprise
9. The Way I Feel Tonight
10. Dreams Of Oceans
11. Pull Up (feat. Haviah Mighty)
12. Bollywood Bounce
13. Is This Yours
Since forming a decade ago in their native Toronto, Keys N Krates have carved their own path via a bass-centric, sample-driven sound, melding the realms of electronic, hip-hop and beyond. The group — composed of drummer Adam Tune, keyboardist David Matisse and turntablist Jr. Flo — has built a venerable reputation as one of the leading live electronic acts today on the strength of their onstage instrumentation and energetic sets.
Their early sound succeeded in combining catchy, pitched up, chopped vocal samples with 808s, resulting in off-kilter festival smashers like ‘Dum Dee Dum’, ‘Treat Me Right’, and other fan-favourites. These songs would be reinterpreted into energetic live versions that the trio would play to create their own experience and vibe. Their songs’ original versions would also be played by legends of their genre like TNGHT, Diplo, Machinedrum, Baauer, and more — helping to cement Keys N Krates as a fixture in festival bass and trap music.
Keys N Krates’ 2018 debut album Cura represented a musical shift for the band. Although the use of pulverising 808s, organic sounds, and vocal samples would remain a fixture for the trio, Keys N Krates embraced their love for R&B/soul music, more dense instrumentation (such as strings and woodwind instruments), and catchy vocal-driven pop songs.
Anthemic songs with Tory Lanez, Ambre Perkins, and 070 Shake weaved together the band’s technicolour world of vocal-driven songs supported by sample-chopped beats that blended the sounds of disco, trap, and boom-bap rap of the 90s. This synthesis earned them commercial radio success and spins from some of their idols on speciality radio —like Elton John and Q-Tip. ‘Flute Loop’ reached back to the trio’s traditional stripped-down 808 sound while incorporating their new techniques of orchestration and resampling to compliment the minimal with the maximal.
Their previous full-length project, 2019's A Beat Tape For Your Friends, further elevated their craft as they pay homage to their sample-chopping musical influences like Jay Dilla. It’s a collection of infectious, loopy, instrumental beats that shows the seeds their music grows from.
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