Non Stop
Tiga
Different
The music world hasn’t heard much from Tiga lately. Since releasing his second studio album, Ciao!, in 2009, the Montreal-based DJ has kept a relatively low profile. Having only released a handful of singles since then, 2012 sees Tiga return with Non Stop, a 28-track mix CD which sees him cover a plethora of works from all sorts of electronic artists, as well as mixing in a few yet-to-be released tracks of his own. The result is a wonderful trip through the genre which should appeal to underground EDM fanatics and pop-oriented listeners alike.
After easing us in with Kindness’ cover of “Swingin’ Party” by The Replacements, Tiga quickly changes things up by mixing in some grooving, abstract techno jams to carry through the next fifteen minutes. Tiga then drops some unreleased material of his into the mix, courtesy of a track called “Plush.” Co-produced by American electro counterpart Matthew Dear, the tune is largely dominated by a bass-heavy beat with attitude, coupled with some unnerving synth stabs and an odd, repetitive vocal line (I don’t need a calculator/to know I want to see you later). After a raunchy booty-bass break courtesy of “Track City Bitch,” Tiga opts to kick the beats per minute up a few notches with Romare’s spacious, hypnotic “It Began in Africa.”
Just over the halfway point of the mix, Tiga drops another track of his own. Titled “The Picture,” this one bumps hard with its tribal influenced, dancy beat, despite being subject to yet another strange vocal line overtop (Take if you will, a picture/Of oceans, and violence, and blue). Things then get minimal all of a sudden with Locked Groove’s “Keep Thorough,” but they don’t stay that way for long, as Duke Dumont’s “The Giver” arrives with its incredibly infectious beat and glitchy instrumental work.
With the beats per minute climbing ever higher, other highlights of the mix include groovy, dancefloor duo of Clouds’ “Those Cracks in Your Face, Do They Hurt?,” and “6 to 6 Lick” from Blawan. Tiga makes sure to feature the work of fellow Montreal producer Jacques Greene, mixing in his poppy synth-laden track “Prism.” “Total Confusion (Heavenly Mix)” from “A Homeboy, a Hippie & a Funki Dredd” rounds out the mix to bring up shades of classic rave environments, and max out the BPM at 126 — miles above the 108 that the mix started at.
What you have at the end of Non Stop is a collection of songs that make you want to get up and dance, all while exposing yourself to a host of EDM music you probably wouldn’t hear from otherwise unless you have a large amount of time to scour the underground scene. Tiga’s ability to select and seamlessly combine classic dancefloor bangers and musically interesting pieces is an incredible skill, which is on full display within the mix. A skill such as that is a deadly one-two punch for any producer to wield.
