Beni – House of Beni

It looks like you're using an ad blocker. That's cool! We get it :)
You can support us by sharing this story or following us on Facebook.

Back to Top

Beni – House of Beni

I’m not going to lie, I hadn’t actually listened to Beni in a very long time before reviewing this album. His remix of Tiga’s ‘Shoes’ and his Maximus EP from 2009 were great, but I was pleasantly surprised by a really solid record, brimming with glam disco sounds.

The whole retro synth disco genre is getting a bit crowded these days, but ‘House of Beni’ is just great fun to listen to, and totally stands on it’s own two feet without having to prop itself up on any particular genre. This is helped a lot by having a fantastic range of guest vocalists, including Nomi Ruiz (of Hercules and Love Affair) and Sam Sparro. Sparro’s vocals on ‘High Off Your Love’ suit it perfectly, his deep soul sound really working well with the slap bass laden track.

Another refreshing thing about the record is that it actually works well as a complete album, unlike an awful lot of electronic albums I’ve listened to lately. It’s beautifully crafted, with the housey ‘O.P.U.L.E.N.C.E’ being the peak of the experience. ‘Zig Zags’ is a slower track, almost a lullaby after the party, further showing how much thought has gone into the actual compilation and arrangement of the music.

Beni – O.P.U.L.E.N.C.E by modularpeople

The album reminded me a lot of Rimer London’s recent debut, with a similar groove. This is by no means a bad thing; there’s a great wave of producers making exciting, unpretentious synth led electronic music, and Beni is definitely at the forefront of this. The strongest tracks for me were ‘Someone Just Like You’ and ‘Love Scene’, both are an absolute blast to listen to and have super solid club credentials.

Beni – Someone Just Like You by modularpeople

Still trying to decide if the " target="_blank">video of ‘It’s A Bubble’ is a mockumentary?! Either way, it’s an amusing watch, and has some mind bendingly awesome dancing in it. Not the strongest track off the record by any means, it’s a little annoying after a while, but it’s still good fun to listen to and has that quintessential happy go clubby vibe.

To sum it up, ‘House Of Beni’ is a bit like a decent night out condensed into ten tracks. It’s not perfect (I can’t say I’m a huge fan of ‘Your Body’) but it works really well as a whole, which is getting rarer and rarer. Definitely high up on the danceabilityometer. The album artwork is also REALLY nice, which wins it some more love. There are clearly a huge number of different influences in each track, which helps give ‘House Of Beni’ a real charm and originality.

‘House Of Beni’ is out on October 11th on Modular, plus keep your eyes peeled for a Beni mix exclusively for Stoney Roads coming this weekend!

Beni – House of Beni by modularpeople

Comments

Related Posts