Amonita – Riviera [Proportion]

Posted on 13th December 2024

7 min read

Making her label debut, Amonita joins the Proportion roster with her beautiful “Riviera”. Describing herself as “a dreamy fairy, DJ and musician”, the best-selling Organic House artist is an ever-evolving force where “beauty, harmony and aesthetics” are found throughout her music. A regular on such celebrated imprints as All Day I Dream, Anjunadeep and Shanti Radio, “Riviera” is redolent in a beautiful and ethereal narrative that glistens through Amonita’s use of live acoustic instruments and synthesiser melodies. Easily developing over its 7-minute timeframe, a swathe of cascading melodies and counterpoint motifs create a stunning sonic smorgasbord as a whispering vocal adds a layer of magical intrigue. Backed by a deep kick, smooth sub-bass and body-shaking percussive groove of hats and shakers, Amonita’s “Riviera” is a joy to behold.

First up on remix duties, Michael Coninx is a hugely influential figure within the underground house and techno fraternity. Under his Hermanez production soubriquet, the Belgian artist has consistently found himself at the upper echelons of the Progressive, Deep and Organic House charts with a string of hits dating back to a 2009 debut on Edu Imbernon’s Eklektisch. 15 years and almost 500 production credits later, Hermanez has graced such leading imprints as Christian Smith’s Tronic, Guy J’s Lost & Found, John Digweed’s Bedrock Records and his own Mooizo, with a trademark sound supported by a DJ glitterati that includes Luciano, Loco Dice and Reboot. Another Proportion debutant, the Hermanez remix is a glorious groove-laden affair that makes elegant use of the melodic foundations of “Riviera” while combining them with a panoply of additional production material that showcases the Belgian’s unique sound. Analogue and modular arps plus melodies with huge reverb tails glide across the 7-minute piece with additional bleeps and stereo-panned effects. Anchored by a seismic sub-bass groove and intricately programmed percussive verve, the result is an innovative and mesmerising showcase of Hermanez’s production technique.

The final remix sees Ranta take centre stage. An artist with a strong identity, his use of “organic instruments and Slavic melodies” creates a “story of vivid impressions to immerse the listener in a special atmosphere”. With such a powerful sonic vision, it is little wonder the Russian producer has featured on a plethora of blue-chip Organic House imprints since an early-2021 debut on RYNTH. Since then, a century of production credits have found their way onto the likes of WAYU Records, Plaisirs Sonores, Journey of the Soul and Nick Warren’s The Soundgarden, supported by such leading lights as Sebastien Leger, Tim Green, Roy Rosenfeld and Amonita herself. A third Proportion debutant now sees Ranta deliver a beautifully crafted interpretation that takes Amonita’s original and transforms it into a powerful club-friendly affair. Making intelligent use of Riviera’s melodic sweep and breathy vocal stanzas, Ranta takes elements central to the original and creates a pulsating remix that revels in a growling bassline sequence and chunky rhythmic foundation. Additional production material arrives through a smooth new chord progression at the breakdown in a reworking that waxes and wanes with dancefloor ease.

Full of sunlit beauty and coruscating elegance, Amonita’s “Riviera” is further illuminated by iridescent aural energy from Hermanez and Ranta.

Buy: https://www.beatport.com/release/riviera-hermanez-ranta-remixes/4834009
Release Date: 20-12-2024