Luman Child, aka Neuchâtel-born Swiss artist Pascal Strauss, follows his debut release on Tru Thoughts with a supreme gospel-house remix by Ashley Beedle’s ‘North Street West’ collective of “Grateful” featuring Philly soul-singer Robert Gee, taken from the EP ‘Love Is The Message’.
Ashley Beedle is a living legend of dance music as a DJ, producer, remixer and re-editor; referenced in Daft Punk’s “Teachers”, a tribute to all influences of the French-robotic-duo. His many monikers include X-Press 2, Ballistic Brothers, Black Science Orchestra, Afrikanz on Marz, Warbox and North Street West, to name but a few. Ashley Beedle first discovered Luman Child via his Worldwide FM show ‘The Heavy Disco Spectacular’, supporting the original ‘Grateful’ on the airwaves. North Street West partner Jo Wallace said the track “epitomises everything that is not only good about house music, but it also says thank you to people through the power of music.”
“Grateful” is an ecstatic, orchestral gospel-house and modern soul tune, dedicated as a love letter to Pascal’s family. “Grateful” has been described by jungle and broken beat pioneer Marc Mac (4hero / Reinforced Records) as a “real uplifting summer soul/boogie groover, nice string arrangement, signature funky bass from Luman Child and a big gospel-style chorus vocal to brighten up the dance floor.” Featuring the pristine vocals of the Philly-Soul singer/songwriter Robert Gee, a long-time collaborator of Pascal, featuring on his debut solo album ‘Time To Grow’ (2017, Sedsoul Records), “Grateful” is a peak-time weapon that sees Gee’s energy-filled vocal delivery speaking directly from the heart.
The North Street West Collective are a UK dance music success story, based around the three-way team of Ashley Beedle, Darren Morris and Jo Wallace. Between them, they’re a studio and remix/production team. From their North Street West Studio in a secret location somewhere deep in St. Leonards, on the UK’s South coast, they turn out their original projects and remixes, including all the productions for Jo’s Ramrock and F*CLR labels.
The ‘North Street West Sound’ is hard to capture in a single sentence. They’ve remixed artists as varied as Groove Armada, STR4TA, Joseph Malik, Smoove & Turrell, Honey Dijon, Tom Glide, Lay-Far, Lady Blackbird, Fuminori Kagajo, Ghetto Priest and many more. Style-wise, the North Street West sound ranges across house, soul, jazz, reggae, electronica, dub, disco, country soul and downtempo. Their remix cannon is an impressive catalogue of club-friendly, dancefloor-ready originals and remixes, high in musicality, low on pretension.
Luman Child is an artist that continues to push boundaries with his growing repertoire, showcasing his unique style and building on the success of his musical inspiration. Releasing on renowned labels like Solid Ground Recordings, Sed Soul Records, Visions Recordings and Makin’ Moves, Luman Child has collaborated with a host of international and acclaimed artists such as Gwen McCrae, MAQman, Marc Mac’s ‘Fourth Kind’ project, Alex Attias and more.
With previous support from Gilles Peterson, Mixmag, Traxsource, Juno Download, BBE, First Word Records, Scott Dallavo (KCRW) and many more, Luman Child continues his evolution with a remix from a pioneer in the game: “I like to play and share the music because it is a vector of emotions. It goes beyond verbal language. My primary goal is for my music to travel and provide a sensation to others” Pascal concludes.
