I don’t know if the club kids are flocking to a group like Rhye, but when I first came across their stuff I thought, “This sounds like comedown music for today’s rave generation, at least for the ones that are crushing really, really hard.”
If John Hughes was a contemporary filmmaker and he got somebody like Grimes or Diplo to assemble the soundtrack to one of his movies, Open (Ryan Hemsworth Remix) would be the song they play during the scene at the high school prom, when our two romantically entangled leads are standing close with arms, legs, and bodies intertwined. Soft focus with the lights down low, and pull in for the close up. They make eye contact, and sway.
This starts out like some James Blake ish, a quiet storm of electronic tremble. Before long though, the textures start to throb and click into sync and the whole thing swings into motion. This is all kept in place with a very R&B framework, much like the source material. Fortunately Hemsworth keeps a lot of the things that make the original track so compelling firmly in place, choosing to expand upon the foundation it provides instead of tearing it down and building it back up again. Gentle coos flutter underneath the mix, the vocals of Mike Milosh never reach above a strained whisper, and the melodies build and crest up against the exaltations in the lyrics.
I’m a fool for that shake in your thighs
I’m a fool for that sound in your sighs
I’m a fool for your belly
I’m a fool for your…
You can bump this track in the afterglow of the early morning dawn, by the embers of the low-hanging flickering candle light, or in the darkened bedroom, with only the neon glow of the city peering in through the creases in your curtains. So versatile. It isn’t just “f$&k me” music or “make love to me” music. This is “embrace me” music, “take me for who I am” music. What’s sexier than that?
Rhye – Open (Ryan Hemsworth Remix)
BONUS: We’ve also included the original below. Compare, contrast, and enjoy.