Nelson Bishop – Alice et les Aloes [Startree]

START003_nelson bishopPlanted in 2013, Startree was imagined as an outlet for experiments with dance music and releases which promote the values of arrangement, texture and musicality over volume or the novelty of short-lived club tropes.

The label’s music is produced and mixed, with few exceptions, by Darshan Jesrani at his studio, The Bhakti Box, in Brooklyn, NY. Its first two releases, Funn City’s “All Night People” (2013) and Cylinder’s “Disco Engine” (2015) earned superlative praise from the underground, in addition to inspired reviews at well-known outlets such as Groove Magazine, Test Pressing, Pitchfork and Spin.

For its third release and first by another artist, the talented Nelson Bishop, Startree walks on the sensual side, showcasing its breadth of musical interest. Stating its dedication to the engagement of listeners and dancers alike, Startree offers a glimpse of things to come.

“Alice et les Aloes“ is a heart-rending, melancholic-yet-propulsive piece which impels the dancer in lovely and unforseen directions. The bass guitar holds the bottom down with a easy-yet-mighty, low-slung sleaze, and the ascending electric piano and keyboard figures joyfully take it to the stars. Soulful with modern-rock edges, this is music which endears itself to the listener on more than one level and for longer than one season.