Vietnamese Label Stargazing Records Release New Album “Bang Bang” Determind recently released a new album, “Bang Bang” on Stargazing Records, a rising Vietnamese label dedicated to House music.
Determind recently released a new album, “Bang Bang” on Stargazing Records, a rising Vietnamese label dedicated to House music.
This album inspires a strong house music foundation with a marked development toward the funky, groovy, tribal, Latin, or jack’in house subgenres deeply inspired by artists like Gabry Venus, Block & Crown, Crazibiza, & Simon Fava among others.
Determind did not release any music for a valid reason last year. In order to make the best out of time spent during lockdown, he decided to strengthen his musical skills by taking piano and music theory classes online. In addition to that, he’d also crafted a funky, old-school house album project titled Bang Bang. The music video premieres today on his YouTube channel.
The album features astounding local creatives including Nuce, a Canadian rapper based in Hanoi for the remix of Lingerie, who interpreted a hip hop song from the rapper Young MC.
In the collaboration with Lonie, a Vietnamese rapper from Saigon, In The Club forges its very own original lyrics and style representing his crew, D.C.O.D. And again with Florian’s piano teacher from Cuba, El Narra, for a stunning original Latin house song El Boom Boom of My Heart.
As a result, the album brings a brilliant diversity into a consistent, solid, professional, remarkable piece of music. Bringing forward a remix of the worldwide hit from the ’70s, with You Really Got A Hold On Me by Smokey Robinson & The Miracles, interpreted by Carolina Padrón, a professional singer and songwriter from Ecuador.
Interpreted by Nguyen Phuong Trang (alias Mercy), Bang Bang is a remix of the Chinese singer Betty Chung’s cover from the world-famous song by Nancy Sinatra. The guitar arrangement takes inspiration from Tarantino’s movie Kill Bill, while the gongs emphasise the Asian element, providing depth and sonorous tone to the flagship track.
Lyric excerpts from Bang Bang: 你怎能瞒过我///今天对我说什么///你就要记得怎么做///要是发现欺骗我///看你怎样逃得过。
The last track is an original work titled No Fear, Tribute To Nina Simone. Sampling Nina Simone’s prominent speeches, it is an acid house track, another gem nevertheless, tributed to one of the most inspirational pianist artists the world has given us today. It expresses the producer’s signature sound of “an old-school vibe that we could hear in 90s rave”. Simone’s vision of love, freedom, and dedication to the Black community is accompanied by a melodic rendition using the piano accordion.
Another great achievement with this album is the signing of an outstanding Vietnamese producer Vũ Đăng Tuấn (alias Skulz), the very first artist to join the label. He has created a fantastic remix to No Fear, Tribute To Nina Simone, which is scheduled for release this April.
Skulz will be followed by Võ Mậu Tuân (alias Matty), a brilliant Vietnamese producer, for an electronic release planned for May 2022.
Bang Bang was produced & mixed by Determind in 2021 and Mastered by Attiss Ngo at Sao Tho Studio, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. The art cover was designed by Jerzy Kaczmarek.
About Stargazing Records
Stargazing Records is a Ho Chi Minh-based label founded by Florian Ferruzza (a.k.a Determind) in 2020. Focused within the House genre, Ferruzza envisions a future that sees the label collaborate with world-class artists, musicians, and labels. He sets about creating artistic professionalism and promoting local talents in Vietnam leveled with the quality of music achieved by established, international labels today.
Puspawarna, the label’s first single release, garnered over 25,000 plays within days it was selected for broadcast on Eelke Kleijn’s weekly podcast, DayslikeNights 131.
Connect with the Artists:
Determind
Skulz
Matty
Mercy
Nuce
Lonie
Connect with the Studios:
Attiss Ngo (Master Engineer)
Video Production: Nghĩa Nguyễn and Trân Lê from 97 Serpent