Like cookies and cream,  Golden Features and The Presets have come together to blend the right ingredients for a banging creatively unrestrained four track EP in ‘RAKA’.

These two well-known high energy dance acts, both individually deliver emotionally encompassing dance music to fill floors with uninhibited hands in the air dancing. The EP itself explores ideas lead by both parties, creating for some indulgent, fun and uncomplicated listening. Special mention has to go out to their track ‘Control’ that feels like it encompasses the aura of both acts through The Presets distinctive vocal builds and Golden Features devilish bass dropping chorus. Face melter!

To celebrate your first listen, we caught up with KIM from The Presets to cut a sense of what it was like working alongside Golden Features, what the songs mean and whether there’s going to be a collaborative live show on the cards.

SR – How did you guys initially connect with Golden Features?

KIM – Tom (Golden Features) and I were introduced to each other by a mutual friend. We quickly became good friends and very soon after started jamming in the studio messing around with beats and synths. Alongside the DMA’s boys I helped Tom put together a top line for the lead single on “Sect” which was really fun and easy. We kept jamming together and eventually I suggested to Jules that it might be fun to have The Presets collaborate with Tom in a more official capacity, so we kind of started from there.

SR – What was it like working together with Golden Features?

KIM – Working with Tom was great. In many ways we are all very similar, slightly neurotic personality types so there weren’t really any big surprises or moments where we thought things weren’t going to work out. Tom is a one man band and Jules and I are obviously a partnership so there are some fine lines that needed to be navigated but all three of us were very professional and very focused on doing the best we can at that point in time to bring to life our shared vision for the collaboration.

SR – What are the ideas behind each song on the EP? 

KIM – Coming into this collab I think we had some pretty strong ideas about how things could sound and what kind of feelings we could shoot for. Being fans of each others’ work made that process relatively easy. We knew we wanted the material to be groovy yet dark and clubby but also pretty and with an edge.

“Raka” and “The End” were the first tracks that came to life very quickly. With “Raka” we were aiming for an anthemic, fool-proof banger that would easily slide into either one of our live sets.

“The End” started off quite industrial with a very vicious vocal over a sexy beat and bass groove. We cooled it off by having Jules deliver the vocal in a way that was more of a spoken word, slightly sinister approach. It’s paranoid and dark but retains its sexiness so its a very interesting combo. The lyrics are very intense and the groove has this feeling of pent up energy that works its way almost to boiling point but never really explodes.

“Paradise” was brought to life when Tom recorded Julians vocal and processed it to create a backing track that was already sounding like a perfect collab even without a lead vocal on it. Julian’s vocal has a beautiful yearning to it similar to some of our older material like “Girl & The Sea” or “Anywhere”.

Finally “Control” was something that Tom brought to us late in the piece, that was more or less a finished bed without a top line. Jules quickly brought it to life with a killer vocal that really felt like it rounded out the body of work and took the project to a surprising new place.

SR – Finally, any plans for a Golden Features x The Presets show?

KIM – That would be great! There might be something in the works but you will have to stay tuned to see what it is.

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The ‘RAKA’ EP is as bold and abrasive as it looks in cap locks and sounds said out loud.

Golden Features & The Presets ‘RAKA EP’ is out now on EMI Australia.