Dinky “Falling Angel”
A common complaint about the Visionquest label is that it’s not actually as psychedelic as […]
A common complaint about the Visionquest label is that it’s not actually as psychedelic as its owners would like their audience to believe. Chilean-born Alejandra Iglesias, better known as Dinky, is a fine choice for combatting this reputation. The producer never strays too far from linear, DJ-friendly arrangements, but her tracks are typically full of quirky—but never overly goofy—melodic touches, organic percussion, and hushed, druggy vocals. In short, Iglesias represents a cross between the pop aspects the label has pursued so far and trippier fare.
Like Time to Lose It, Dinky’s first effort for Visionquest, “Falling Angel” is anchored by the producer’s singing, which is multi-tracked so that it sounds like a kind of communal chant. Although it’s cut with a few micro-house touches, the rhythm is fairly stock, vaguely Chicagoan tech-house, and Iglesias’ anthemic cooing remains the track’s main draw. A Pépé Bradock remix promises to take it into more outré territory, and for his “Détournement au Phlogiston,” the notoriously eccentric producer leaves the vocal intact and lays down a jazzy undercurrent of organ stabs and direction changes. He creates a palpable sense of disconnection in the process: Iglesias’ vocals remain expansive, with an almost pastoral freedom, while Bradock’s arrangement is bustling and urban.
Matthew Styles, meanwhile, capitalizes on the vocal’s ritualistic power. The British producer expertly teases out each element, pushing the track onto increasingly higher planes. As on the original, the rhythm is fairly simple—albeit with a bit of added rustle—and Styles accentuates it with churning bass and subtly stirring guitar twangs. Iglesias’ vocal remains the heart, though, and is amplified to be used as a more tangible hook. It would have been interesting to hear the vocal modified more, but Bradock and Styles’ lack of treatment testify to the original’s heady dominance.