Releases / Hood Natives feat. Mac Z - “Sax In The City”

Not too many instrumental tracks have the potential to substitute a song, but after “Capricorn” by the “60 Hertz Project” GOGO Music found another one of that kind, which seems to be sparkled with a similar secret magic dust. With the deeply spiritual “Sax In The City” we introduce the “Hood Natives” of Sir LSG featuring the saxophone talents of Mac Z.

Nearly 20 years before world-renowned house DJ Ralf GUM picked up on the talent of Sir LSG, Lesego Sefako was just another singer in the church choir. That six-year old Mafikeng native didn’t know it then, but his naive fascination with melodies would eventually catapult him into the world of house music. Sir LSG’s style is as a sublime mixture of soulful house with a portion of instruments from his home country. It was the 2008 South African Music Conference that would change his life forever. Sir LSG’s DJ skills not only resulted in him winning the DJ Battle competition, he also caught the eye of the legendary DJ Christos, that very day. Thanks to Sir LSG’s rock solid relationship with his mentor Christos, Ralf GUM came across “Sax in the City” which finally found its way to light when he got in on the action.

It was obvious that Raw Artistic Soul would be the perfect man to remix this track, as the percussive and deep vibe just appeals consummately to his style. Phil dug the Original that much, that he decided to stay nigh to it, however once more proved that he is a real master of percussion and melodies created with them. His mix came out as a tasteful 11 minutes journey with perfectly chosen sounds that attach additional punch. His Dub mix reduces the saxophone and amplifies the groove, which makes it more than a perfect DJ tool with ample deepness.

With Nastee Nev we welcome another artist from the motherland to GOGO Music for the first time. Nastee Nev is not just one, but assuredly one of the fastest rising talents to emerge from the fertile grounds of the African capitol of House Pretoria. Nastee morphs the song into his beloved soulful laid back style and garnished his version with a beautiful jazzy piano perfectly complementing the saxophone of Mac Z.

With this release GOGO Music once more brings a hot new talent to the light and delivers a great package of all-embracing sonic pleasure.

Tracklist Hood Natives feat. Mac Z - Sax In The City - GOGO 046:

1. Raw Artistic Soul Remix 11:02 min
2. Nastee’s 0808 Nevas Mix 8:12 min
3. Original Mix 7:23 min
4. Raw Artistic Soul Dub 11:07 min
5. Raw Artistic Soul Beat 8:32 min

GOGO Music … music it is and is it!

PRESS REACTIONS AND REVIEWS:

SpiritOfHouse (Switzerland)
Hood Natives feat. Mac Z - Sax In The City - GOGO 046

In the Spotlight!
History repeats itself as GOGO Music follow-up the highly acclaimed "Capricorn" by 60 Hertz Project with another seminal instrumental production courtesy of South Africa's Lesego Sefako aka Sir LSG. "Sax in the city" is a spiritually deep production featuring an incredible saxophone by Mac Z alongside gorgeous keys and chords over thrilling rhythms. Raw Artistic Soul stays close to the original on his remix, an eleven minute journey into deepest truly hypnotic grounds that oozes with exquisite melodies and intriguing percussive elements. Next is Nastee Nev who contributes a glamorous laidback interpretation built around a fiery yet smooth backdrop that is laced with a grand jazzy piano that perfectly complements the saxophone. by Michael Fossati

Tilllate magazin
Hood Natives feat. Mac Z - Sax in the city GOGO 046

This is not really a vocal house track but as it may be a little to soulful for my House review colleagues I decided to cover it here. The track really is too good to get overlooked in any way South African native Sir LSG aka Hood Natives teams up with outstanding sax player Mac Z for Ralf GUM’s GOGO Music stable. The result is a wonderful South African instrumental pearl that highlights the memorable sax riffs in a perfect way. On the remix front GOGO Music’s in-house remixer Raw Artistic Soul aka Phil Kullmann delivers the definitive mixes: On his main mix he keeps strongly to the Original while adding his trademark percussion and deep keys to a superb result. On his Dub he reduces the use of the sax which results in a perfect deep summer piece. Finally Pretoria native Nastee Nev delivers a jazzy mix that rounds off a great package. By Mannix

Magma DJ web (Italy)
Hood Natives feat. Mac Z - Sax In The City - GOGO 046

Incredible deep sounds by Hood Natives with slamming jazzy sax by Mac Z for the new release on GOGO Music. Huge bassline with dancefloor percussive rhythm on Raw Artistic's remixes. A sax reduction on his Dub version. More classic with refined pad the Original Mix. Lounge sounds with slow rhythm, piano melodies and hands clap on the Nasteee's 0808 Nevas Mix. Both useful in more listening situation. This package is an instrumental track that will work in all situations. By Alessio Furia

5 Magazine (Chicago, USA)
Hood Natives feat. Mac Z - Sax In The City - GOGO 046

GOGO Music seems to consistently find new talent to grace our ears and "Sax In The City" is no different as they bring us a great (and in my opinion, even better) follow up to the vibra-iffic hit, "Capricorn" by 60 Hertz's Project. Nastee's 0808 Nevas Mix is my favorite out of all the mixes on this release and that's the one I will be reviewing. Nastee Nev hails from one of the three main House Music cities in South Africa, Pretoria. Pretoria's original name was, "Pretoria, Philadelphia" ("Pretoria of Brotherly Love") so it's no wonder why the city has been called "The House Music center of South Africa." Nastee's 0808 Nevas Mix starts as a stripped down drum track with a simple kick, conga, rim shots and high hats. Nastee uses nice organic-like percussion sounds and they are great for mixing at 124bpm. Then comes the pad-like chords, a bit of piano and bass line with a deeper, soft Tech House feel to them. After these separate parts all shake hands and start grooving with each other, my attention was brought to the melodic piano fading in. I wish the piano was brought up a little bit brighter in the mix, but it doesn't take away from the overall great feeling that the piano gives the song. Just as I start to notice this, Mac-Z's sax begins to fade up in the distance like the sun rising on a rooftop sax player. At this point, I don't even think about the piano being too low in the mix because when the saxophone and piano are playing together, it sounds great. About midway through the song, you might notice that several percussion parts have been discreetly added. Other than one or two percussion parts that may or may not have come in too loudly, you never even notice the others in the mix. This slightly lifts the energy of the song in a subtle, almost invisible way. Since so much of the focus of this song is on the sax, you don't notice most of the added percussion until much later in the song and it's a masterful production technique employed by Nastee Nev. This is a nice, mellow song for people who are into listening to long sax solos while floating over in the deep end of the swimming pool. The genius in this remix is in the subtleties. Combine that with the storytelling genius of Mac Z on the saxophone and that makes this remix the one for anyone who likes their beats deep and their lead instruments played by a real musician on a real instrument. by Trevor Ricci

Housepage.net (Italy)
Hood Natives feat. Mac Z - Sax In The City - GOGO 046

GOGO Music returns with another deep and intense instrumental release titled "Sax in the city". Provided by South African talented producer Sir SLG and featuring the saxophone talents of Mac Z, this track is a sublime soulful house affair with an intense african taste. Raw Artistic Soul goes deeper in his remix, adding his trademark percussive style and keeping the original vibe alive. Finally, rising South African talent Nastee Nev delivers his soulful laidback rework, adding warm percussions and a beautiful jazzy piano that perfectly meets the Mac Z saxophone. by Franco Martinelli

Some Hood Natives feat. Mac Z - Sax In The City - GOGO 046 DJ feedback:

:: "I'm loving the sound of your Raw Artistic Soul Dub. Definitely something I look forward to playing out. Got a lovely vibe to it. Nice one." Jimpster (Freerange, UK)

:: "Excellent track! Raw Artistic Soul Mixes work for us!" Tony Humphries & Jacko (Tony Records, USA)

:: "Awesome package. DOPE!!!" Vinny Da Vinci (House Afrika, South Africa)

:: "Great package as always on GOGO!! My fav mix is the Original mix and the killer Raw Artistic Soul Dub mix who always brings your track to another level!!! Thanks for it." Rocco (France)

:: "Really liking the release." Dean Zepherin (Tribe, UK)

:: "Raw Artistic Soul is hands down my favourite producer of at the moment and has been a strong favourite of mine now for a couple of years. Always a pleasure to receive promos from you Ralf and this is another touch of magic. Deffo one for us. Expect max support from us." The Layabouts (UK)

:: "I love this piece! Beautiful deep house waves!" Culoe De Song (Soulistic Music, South Africa)

:: "This package is beautiful, deep dance music at it’s very, very best - Raw Artistic Soul remix is incredible." Jonny Montana & Craig Stewart (Universe Media,UK)

:: "Quality stuff as always! Support from Amsterdam!" Roog (Hardsoul, Netherlands)

:: "Heard the original last time I was in South Africa and couldn't wait to get my hands on it! Another winner from the house lover making machine GOGO Music!" Lars Behrenroth (Deeper Shades of House, USA)

:: "Some SERIOUS deep loveliness going on here.... Original & Raw Artistic Soul mixes sound lush!" Russell Pollitt (Soulfuledge, UK)

:: "Tiiiight release. great Original and class remixes - really reminds me of a cinematic aural journey through san francisco for some reason :)" Jon Pierce (Da Wise Guy, Ireland)

:: "Gooood one!" Ben Moss (Loss Audio, Germany)

:: "I like the Raw Artistic Soul mixes on this release." Kiko Navarro (Spain)

:: "This is an absolutely stunning release - GOGO Music just don't put a foot wrong at the moment... The original is a wonderfully unique and original track, and on first listen, both the Raw Artistic versions, and Nastee’s 0808 mix are standing out most for me. Great stuff once again." Bobi (Club FM, Macedonia)

:: "All mixes are useful. My fav this time: Raw Artistic Soul Remix. 10/10" Lorenzo Aldino (7th District, Austria)

:: "In love with the Raw Artistic Soul musical masterpiece. So soulful & warm!" Gregor Wagner (Bush II Bush, Germany)

:: "Damn this is a dope tune, I love the different melodies used in the jam." Edgar (Platnum Hour Kaya FM, South Africa)

:: "As always GOGO Music is on point. Raw Artistic Soul Mix is going to be big! I am putting it in my Hot99 Dance Countdown this week ... absolutely hot!!!" Just Mo. (YFM, South Africa)

:: "Another killer from GOGO Music, the deepness contuines, all about the 'Nastee Nev remix' on this for me, playlisted this week on the show!!" Alan O (Multi Storey Soul radio show, RTE Pulse, Dublin, Ireland)

:: "This track is super dope! I can't wait to drop the Raw Artistic Soul remix on air and in the clubs!!" Raul Campos (Kcrw, USA)

:: "Love the Raw Artistic Soul mix." Antony Angell (Stereo Sushi Radio, UK)

:: "Massive! Raw Artistic Soul Remix is the best for me! Full Support." Mirko Paoloni (Radio Party Groove, Italy)

:: "As I'm sure you already know, it's another tasty release. The Raw Artisitic Soul mixes are simply amazing and I'm sure I'll be playing this for some time to come." Dean Seraphini (jjazproject.com, UK)

:: "Great spiritual vibe, love it:) Raw Artistic Soul mix is my mix... thanks for the vibe." Joan Ribas (Ibizasoulstice, Spain)

:: "Will give Air-Play Rotation on Radio48 these two the Raw Artistic Soul Remix and Nastee's 0808 Nevas Mix. Groove Me Once! Groove Me Twice! Oooh that's sooo Nice!" Elliott (Radio48, USA)

:: "Overall: Smooth, mellow and soulful - just great, full support! Raw Artistic Soul Remix: very good! Nastee’s 0808 Nevas Mix: even better! Original Mix: nice! Raw Artistic Soul Dub: solid!" Bernd Niedergesaess (Radio 42, Germany)

:: "Raw Artistic Soul Remix: Set for the deep heads and late night this one crawls into the senses with ease. Nastee’s 0808 Nevas Mix: The snappy keys give a uplifting quality that still holds a true nature of depth. Original Mix: The percussion seems to be hidden and needs to come forth more, great redo still though. Raw Artistic Soul Dub & Raw Artistic Soul Beat: Rounding off with a mellow groove anybody can slide into." Marc Lacasse (Oxid, Canada)

:: "I’ll play with so much pleasure Nastee’s 0808 Nevas Mix and the wonderful hypnotic Raw Artistic Soul Dub!!" Cesare "boogeyman" Cera aka Black Mighty Wax (Gruradio, Italy)

:: "Great tracks." Miguel Garji (Ibiza Global Radio, Spain)

:: "The Raw Artistic Soul are the ones. thanks!" Mathias SHOW-B Schober (Compost Radioshow, Germany)

:: "Love the remix versions." Greg Fenton (UK)

:: "Well personally I enjoy the Nastee Nev and Original mix ... truly a great representation of South African music! Great package Ralf looking forward to playing this package!" T Deep (Metro FM, South Africa)

:: "I really enjoyed listening to this new one. I especially liked the Nastee's 0808 Nevas remix. Full support here in NZ." Ingo Hahn (BOP FM, New Zealand)

:: "Super trax. I love the Original mix." Bobstar / Oskido (Metro FM, South Africa)

Raw Artistic Soul Remix
Nastee's 0808 Nevas Remix
Original Mix
Raw Artistic Soul Dub
Raw Artistic Soul Beat