Viigo: High By The Beach (Lana Del Rey cover)

At first glance, there’s not much joining the dots between murky electronic soul crew Viigo and Lana Del Rey. Where the former, whose 2016 singles ‘Move’ and ‘Beautiful’ have proved slow-burning cult hits, have a sound rooted in right now: the dark slink of AWOL XL producer Jai Paul, the dancefloor melancholy of James Blake. Lana’s music meanwhile exists in an old-fashioned 1950s west-coast American dream: all coke bottles and faded glamour. All of which means you might not expect for this week’s 10K single, part of our April Covers Month, to be the lush match it is. But then Viigo are full of surprises.

Taking on ‘High By The Beach’ was a simple choice for instrumentalist Mike McGinnis. “I love the imagery of her songs, very noir. Thought ‘High By The Beach’ would translate well for Viigo. A little more simple, grooves a bit more than the other cuts on ‘Honeymoon.'” Frontman MJ adds: “Her albums are like little movies. I love that line, “you can be a bad motherfucker, but that don’t make you a man.” She’s got killers like that for days.”

Turning the retro sheen of the original into a dark, dingey electro smoulder, it’s more proof (like you needed it) of the invention and pop inspiration underlying what they do. Lana, we sense, would approve. Check it out above and go play your v̶i̶d̶e̶o̶  social media games with Viigo on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

Viigo: Beautiful

Viigo deal in the minutiae of life and love. ‘Move’, their first single of 2016, was about shacking up with a loved one and the twin terror and excitement that goes with that, packed into an icy dancefloor-filler. The single that followed, February’s ‘Other Lives’ meanwhile was a slow-motion electronic ode to sex and growing older. New track ‘Beautiful’ is equally personal and every bit as disarming. Released today on 10K, it’s about those all-too-rare, breathtaking moments when the stars align and the world seems not so bad, put to R&B guitars, a gentle drum machine shuffle and bass that booms like something from the Inception score. Beautiful by name, beautiful by nature.

Accompanied by a fittingly kaleidoscopic video shot by Bad Wave’s Tucker Tora, it’s our latest glimpse into the world of MJ Hancock and Mike McGinnis, the duo at Viigo’s creative core. In case you haven’t been following – the pair are split between McGinnis’s LA and Hancock’s East Coast, where he takes late night beach walks and waits for lyrics to come to him. It’s over the internet they craft their deep, twisting electronic soul music. But with live plans currently coming together, shit’s about to get very IRL very soon.

Till then, bask in the broody brilliance of this latest single, get your daily Viigo fix via Facebook, Instagram and Twitter and we’ll see you same time, same place next Friday. Big love, 10K crew.

Viigo: Other Lives

‘Other Lives’ is a song about a situation that’s inappropriate for audiences of all ages so let’s not talk about what actually inspired it (a fruitful encounter with a member of the opposite sex in a bar, like all great Rolling Stones songs, if you have to know). The band we call Viigo previously brought you the bass-driven thump of January 2016 single ‘Move’, but have foregone the Skrillex-lite drops on this second 2016 single, which focuses more on even sultrier musings courtesy of dynamic duo Mike and MJ. You could mistake the song for being a slinky ode to a butterfly. Actually, that’s a far more family friendly take so let’s go with it.

//She can fly away// sings MJ, tapping into the fleeting nature of the treasures in our lives that we take for granted. It’s all wrapped up in Jai Paul brooding rhythms and mean guitar riffs, and is very Valentine’s Day appropriate. It’s so relaxing it’s like giving your brain a deep cleanse in the tub with some Epsom salts – an activity beloved by both MJ and Mike after a hard day’s slog in the 10K studios.

Sideline Viigo-related celebrations come this week with the great emancipation of Mike McGinnis from windy Chicago as he makes his way to the Holy land of Los Angeles. With MJ still stranded on the East Coast, the pair will continue to make music via the internet. However, the plot thickens as Mike is due to take up residence with two scamps you already know as Bad Wave. Will there be a Bad Wave/Viigo collaboration in future? Who knows what ideas might come to fruition by the light of the refrigerator during one of their future 3am kitchen hangs, of which we presume there’ll be many…

You can dive into the Viigo-y ocean via Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

Till we meet again, amigos, and have a wonderful V Day. May your inboxes be flooded with red rose emojis ❤

Viigo: Move

At the III Points festival in Miami, Florida last October, a shadow-y R&B group called Viigo made their debut appearance. It wasn’t just their live unveiling, the slot was actually the first time the duo (split between Chicago and New Jersey) had recreated their funky futuristic melodies together in a physical space. Ever. Lead vocalist MJ Hancock slid and jumped around the stage as partner Mike McGinnis provided his sonic backbone, flitting between keys and bass. With the help of some of their 10K brethren (whom you’re yet to meet… all in good time) they recreated the smooth allure of their self-titled EP, softly released on 10K last Spring.

That EP was just a precursor to the beastliest of all their beats, ‘Move’, aptly titled for the sole reason that its pulsing bass will throw your chest at the wall and your feet at the ceiling. Viigo is the source of MJ and Mike’s innermost anxieties. The music sounds intimate because they’re a sensitive pair, who perhaps understand each other in a way nobody else does – or should.

✨ New track coming tomorrow via @10KIslands ! ✨ pic.twitter.com/sD1NAHVRxX

— Viigo (@ViigoTweets) January 14, 2016

Remember to follow Viigo on the astroplane… (i.e., Instagram, Facebook and Twitter). See you in seven daysssssss. Stay rad. 😀