UNKLE - Heaven

BLIMEY.

It's quite rare that a song comes along and sweeps you off your feet, immediately creating a deep need to listen to it again and again and again.

UNKLE's new single Heaven has had this effect. As an act, I've never quite understood what UNKLE are trying to achieve. From their original DJ Shadow / James Lavelle incarnation through to their 'let's go full on rock, slack off 95% of our hip-hop and electronica leanings and get Josh Homme to growl over most of our album' Restless, their output has been inconsistent to say the least. However, seemingly also working on the basis of producing so much material that you'll eventually make something good means they occasionally strike upon a winner.

Heaven is undoubtedly a winner. It's won first prize, gone platinum, claimed the gold and topped the polls. It's a stunningly beautiful track, taken from their latest album End Titles...Stories For Film, a collection of offcuts from their previous year's recording efforts. Featuring gently strummed melodic guitars, quiet layers of feedback, choirs and synths, subtle percussion and an amazing Jeff Buckley-esque vocal from Gavin Clark, when the soft pulsating electronic beats hit half way through, it's quite something.

Combine all of this with a Spike Jonze directed video of pro-skaters navigating exploding obstacles in slow-motion, and you have a music and video marriage made in, yep, you guessed it, Heaven.

The King Unique remix is also quite spectacular, changing the track into something closer to deep house, with harder beats, an extended length and more emphasis on the synths than guitars. Vitally though, it doesn't fiddle with formula of the song too much and leaves the stunning vocal in tact. This isn't a remix that beats you over the head, rather one that gently leads you to the dancefloor to experience something contemplative.

A summer song, if ever I heard one. Well done UNKLE.

Heaven (Fully Flared Intro Video Remix)
Uploaded by UNKLE_UK