"Save Their Souls" by HAMILTON BOHANNON (POOLSIDE Edit)

Rebirth into the modern era

Every now and then, just for fun, many of us will open a box of relics from our past, and revisit memories of days gone by. Some items, like puka shell necklaces, will make you glad that it’s 2016 and you’re not that person anymore. Other items, however, like the keys to your old convertible, will make you want to relive those moments. It appears that L.A.’s Filip Nikolic and Jerry Paradise, known collectively as Poolside, have recently cleaned out their attics and dusted off some old classics. As part of their mixtape Contact High, Poolside released an edit of Hamilton Bohannon’s 1973 groove “Save Their Souls,” remembering the classic funk/soul hit through the lens of their modern Daytime Disco perspective. Right away, the duo injects a sustained burst of energy to the originally overwhelmingly placid song by adding a thumping kick drum, pings of alternately struck bells, and suspenseful squirts of synth over the original’s slow guitar patterns and shimmering strings.

As the song goes on, and tides of Bohannon’s soap-on-a-granite-countertop-smooth voice wash in and out, the edit becomes more familiar and similar to the original, with the exclusion of the sharpening of the recording and increased tempo. Old school rhythm and lead guitars slalom and intertwine with each other, joined by deep, downhill bass riffs, and the occasional saxophone soul-o. The addition of a consistent kick drum in this edit transforms the feel of the song a surprising amount, which, along with the addition of space-like synths and the replacement of the original off-beat percussion with consistent shaker and snare patterns, makes it feel much more like a dance track than it originally did. Poolside has brought Bohannon’s quintessential 70’s soul and funk fusion to the modern age with the help of technology, but more importantly, their unique musical vision and penchant for making the world their own.