Late Night Tales: Django Django (2LP)

Format: 2x12" + Download.

Django Django is the latest band invited to curate a prestigious collection of Late Night Tales. Their unconventional approach to music – a blend that sounds like the rich harmonies of The Mamas & The Papas filtered through a refracting prism pointing towards Bo Diddley, Chicago House and outer space – is perhaps not surprising given that Django drummer/producer Dave Maclean is the brother of The Beta Band’s John Maclean, who themselves shared a cinematic vision of the pop landscape.

The mixtape oscillates between two-step delights like Roy Davis Jr’s Gabrielle and Nilsson’s endearing Coconut. At one end of Django’s spectrum, you’ll find James Last, the perennially uncool German, whose version of Inner City Blues proves you should never underestimate the Germans. At the other end, they manage to squeeze in tracks like Ramadanman’s Bass Drums and Bugg’n, the collaboration between Hudson Mohawke and Lunice as TNGHT. In some choices, their influences are clearly perceptible, such as The Beach Boys, whose unmatched Surf’s Up gratifyingly appears halfway through, or Seals & Crofts’ Get Closer, which shows what sunny pop can be when done well.

And, as with every Late Night Tales, there's a brilliant cover version: in this case, a shimmering rendition of The Monkees’ Porpoise Song, from the wildly brilliant film Head, which serves as an admirable lysergic end to this waltz through the nooks and crannies of pop. “Never be afraid to make a fool of yourself for art,” Dave Maclean once said. Let's raise a toast to Scotland’s favourite fools on the hill.

“We wanted to produce a mix that represented the band. It's what we all like, so everyone put their suggestions forward. That's what we are as a group: kids who grew up obsessed with our parents' records, 50s and 60s stuff, and then got into hip hop and electronic music. At the heart of it all are our parents' collections, combined with our own tastes. Our Late Night Tales pays homage to that.”
—Dave Maclean (Django Django)

Django Django appears courtesy of Because Music.