March finally brings us to the first Berkane Sol pressing of the year with label-head Geiom partnering up with female vocalist Marita for an upbeat dancefloor tune in “Sugar Coated Lover.” The label has taken quite a shift from when “Flame Tree” and “Net Weight” were releases;  after the anthemic rise of  ”Reminissin’” Berkane Sol seems set on a path to take over playlist with soul-laced dancefloor grooves.

The A-Side of the release features the original Geiomix of the release, a kick drum sets a quick intro before a fast electric bass groove sets the tone for Marita’s vocals. Do not take my previous assessment totally at face-value, quickly into listening to “Sugar Coated Lover” it’s clear to see Geiom did not intend for this to be a simple follow-up groove to “Reminissin’.” The pace of “Sugar Coated Lover” is an excellent contrast, Marita’s delivery on top of an uptempo rhythmic section are enough to get all the standarounds back to the dancefloor.

The B-Side features a remix of the original from Brackles and Shortstuff, and as always Blunted Robots comes deadly on the remix. The A-Side Geiomix holds an advantage by perserving Marita’s vocals unadultured throughout the track. Blunted Robots comes after the vocal track with an intelligent reinterpretation, looping and editing techniques give Maria’s voice an atmospheric role in the mix, as the duo’s signature bassline drops the remix in to high-gear. Groove-heavy in a totally different manner than the original, these two mixes give two vastly unique interpretations on the expectations of near 140-bpm bass music.

Geiom sets himself, and Berkane Sol apart yet again on this release. Very exciting for two exceptionally different interpretations of the same tune, this is a very refreshing release to take us out of the dark winter sounds and into the uplifting spring / summer dance vibes. I’m itching to get out in the club and hear myself, if not somebody else play these tunes sooner rather than later, the response to these is going to be huge — deservedly so.

Also of note, Geiom recently compiled a wonderful mix for The Wire, click here to see what you might have missed.