Freemasons, the UK production team of Russell Small and James Wiltshire, have released their third compilation, Shakedown 2. In addition to their own originals, the set is packed with recent big-name remixes from the duo, including Beyoncé (“Ring The Alarm”), Moby (“Disco Lies”) and Kylie Minogue (“The One”), plus a surprise or two (reworks of Eurythmics’ “Here Comes The Rain Again” and Marvin Gaye’s “Heard It Through The Grapevine”).
One huge highlight is a new Freemasons track, “Heartbreak (Make Me A Dancer),” featuring UK popster Sophie Ellis-Bextor. (If you haven’t heard Ellis-Bextor’s 2007 album, Trip The Light Fantastic, seek it out.) The song’s theme, about putting on brave face and finding strength under the disco lights, isn’t groundbreaking, but Freemasons have a proven knack for melding bits from old-school soul and disco into something new and move-worthy.
The duo counts Chic as their most consistent muse, though Wiltshire says their references are broader than dance alone, with Small often bringing in left-field ideas from a scouring of iTunes. For “Heartbreak,” the Freemasons don’t stray far from their wheelhouse, paying homage to ABBA’s “Gimme Gimme Gimme” (earlier mined by Madonna and Stuart Price for “Hung Up”) and mixing in some Violator-era Depeche Mode (“Policy Of Truth,” for one).
The “Heartbreak (Make Me A Dancer)” video places Ellis-Bextor front and center, but the choreography, if you can even call it that, undersells the song. Sophie and her backup dancers barely break a sweat. I’m not suggesting a literal in-club concept was called for, but a Beyoncé-style “Single Ladies” workout this is not:
Several mixes of “Heartbreak (Make Me A Dancer)” are available, but if you must choose just one, you can’t go wrong with Freemasons’ original Full Length Club Mix, which brilliantly extends the breakdown a full measure longer for maximum dramatic effect.
Purchase Freemasons feat. Sophie Ellis-Bextor – “Heartbreak (Make Me A Dancer)” via iTunes.