Ta-Ku - Day 7

Artist: Ta-Ku
Album: 50 Days For Dilla Vol.1 (2012)
Track: Day 7

Would you like a sample? 
The track opens with what sounds like the raw sample on which the rest of the track is based. Something that I don't like though is the small gaps in the audio. It might have been chopped up to fit in time with the tempo of the track. Although the vocal chops don't cut away at the same times as the strings beneath them. Either way, I'm relieved when the main beat drops in.

Tonality: 
The orchestral sounds are warm and swell very nicely. The little bit of grit that can be heard in the texture from the trombones adds a slight bit of aggression. A second string part comes in panned to the right speaker after the first rotation of the verse section. Just before it drops in, the drums are muted and we can faintly hear the original drums on the sample. If they are not the original drums then it's a faint hi hat pushed slightly out of time. Coming in with this secondary strings part is a backing vocal (female "oooh") which is panned to the left speaker. This panning arrangement is also evident in the original sample.

Shaking the groove: 
The hi hat/shaker shuffle adds a lot to the groove - it somehow makes the downbeat of the kick drum more effective. The kick drum is set very loud to punch through the mix while the snare is set back. The snare is softened by a large sounding reverb.

Vocals: 
The male vocal sample is very interesting in this context I think. It's a very low register and spoken / sung with little intensity for the most part. So when it's up at the top of the mix it plays with my perceptions a bit. With a later section of the track the vocals are cut up more sharply precisely into briefer pieces.  

How it came to be: 
This is an interesting read about how 50 Days For Dilla came to be. The 50 Days were released on HUH WHAT & WHERE.