UPFRONTBEATS

James Harcourt brings Quartz to Renaissance’

James Harcourt lands at Renaissance on an absolute tear. In just this year alone he’s seen a track hammered by Tale Of Us (Beholden); released on luminary imprints such as Sincopat, Selador and Parquet and been remixed by indie-titan, Musumeci! Reach a little further back in the discography and the plaudits continue’ he’s clearly a producer in undeniable ascent.

Now he returns to Renaissance following a stellar debut on their Merin VA series with their first, full EP together, which is a diverse, 4-track player that pinpoints James’ unique sound and meticulous production. Yet, his inspirations and influences may come as a shock, ‘At the time of writing the tracks I hadn’t set foot in a club for nearly 4 years ‘ even if there’s the pandemic to factor!’, he explains, ‘I just couldn’t find much of the music I wanted from old-skool promo trawling, digital sites and record shops; I realised that if I wanted to create those moments I was looking for, the magic, dancefloor spark you only get at festivals, clubs and parties – that I should get on and make it myself.’

So, with a clear objective, the Quartz EP was born with the dancefloor firmly in mind. Whether the peak-time power of Trust Me With Your Heart, the melodic stylings of Sister and Spellbound, or the emotive breaks of title track Quartz, James paints a musical picture that’s full of power and beauty, ‘I was looking to fire up those moments in the witching hour when the music is enough to tip you from caving-in to raving the early hours away, eventually emerging to reality in the daylight hours!’, he enthuses.

The EP gets a further diversity-injection courtesy of Mr Morek, who brings a shimmer of indie class to Touch Me With Your Heart. ‘I wanted to approach writing this remix from outside the box,’ he says, ‘I set myself the task to experiment a little, yet still deliver a track that can harmoniously cross genres and fit in a wide selection of DJ sets.’