London-based string duo Fran & Flora follow their acclaimed debut album “Unfurl” with a series of high-class remixes featuring renowned guest contributors. Opening cut ‘La Obreja’ sees London’s Portico Quartet deliver a subtle, elegant take on the original album track.
A year after the release of “Unfurl” – a year that saw Fran & Flora enjoy heady praise for the album and performances across the UK and Europe – the duo offer this fascinating new presentation of their debut work. Portico Quartet – and their Mercury Prize-nominated, sophisticated take on jazz-inflected electronica – offer the perfect beginning to this series of re-imaginings. ‘La Obreja’, from the album, is made into an organic, lush, melodic, jazz-minimalism that might fit perfectly on Portico’s former label Ninja Tune. Snippets of vocals from the original’s lead lines wax and wane around a softly restrained drum pattern and delicate synthesis, while newly added minor chords underpin a gentle harmonic foundation.
“Our vision for the remixes was to ask friends and colleagues with whom we have been collaborating for many years or who have helped us in developing the aesthetic of “Unfurl” to bring their take to the music,” Fran & Flora write. The duo have been working with Portico Quartet for some time, featuring on their last two albums, and this remix marks a natural step in the ongoing, mutually inspiring, living relationship between the two acts. Jack Wyllie of Portico Quartet adds: “we dug into the detail of the a capella line, found little fragments that we could use to compose a new piece of music from – focusing on some of the more unusual sounds – and from there tried to make it sound like a Portico Quartet piece.”
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