Originally released back in 2008, ‘I Can See’ was produced by Jazzanova alongside the vocal talents of Ben Westbeech and was an immediate hit, both in and outside of the club. Last month, Dennis Ferrer’s Objektivty imprint put out a new version of the record: a deep, moody and poignant reinterpretation by Kostantin Sibold.
Remixing and re-releasing a previously popular record may be a tried and tested formula, but it’s a rare thing that the new version is both as well-judged and ravenously received as ‘I Can See’ has proved to be. To get the low-down on the story behind the record, we had a few words with label founder Ferrer and man-of-the-moment Konstantin.
When did you first hear the new remix and what made you want to sign it to Objektivty?
Dennis: I first came across this remix when Andre Hommen, our label manager, brought it to my attention. From what I gathered at the time Konstantin and Andre had some business experience with each other and I suppose this remix had been the result of discussions between both parties. As soon as I heard those stabs I was sold! I think the first time I really heard it thoroughly might have been when Andre played it one night at a club called Supermarket in Zurich. It sounded incredible. So the only question was trying to get Jazzanova to agree allow us to license the vocals. This proved extremely difficult and at one point we thought the release was dead. But we kept on them as we really believed in this remix. In the end we had to agree to a really complicated process: they would sign the remix from Konstantin, thereby owning the release, and then license the release to us. I suppose it's not the greatest way of getting it done considering, we all made it work for the better and their composition is in the end getting due credit and everyone is happy. I just wish more labels and artists would work in this manner. It's quite advantageous to all parties involved and it would've never had happened without everyone keeping an open mind. It's the one hand washes the other principle….one that is sorely lacking in this business lately.
The original I Can See was released back in 2008.. what made you want to return to the record and release this new version?
Konstantin: I used to give drum lessons in my hometown and every time a kid didn't want to play the stuff they should be learning we turned on the mpc or drum computers in my studio and made some beats. So one day some kids and I were sitting in front of Ableton and I showed them the filter envelope function in the sampler. You can do crazy stuff with it, so I looked for something I could sample and turn into a new melody and found some stems I had downloaded in 2008 a remix contest for Jazzanova feat. Ben Westbeech - I Can See. I played around with it for a bit, and it sounded pretty good… the kids were impressed! Then I finished the drum lesson, sent the kids home and worked the whole evening on the arrangement with the backing choir and the string session. So it was really pure chance that it ever got made!
With so much of the Beatport dominated by the EDM sound, did you expect that it would perform as well as it has? Why do you think it’s garnered such strong support?
Dennis: People want to sing songs….there are only so many boom chik boom chik bleeps you can try to sing out loud without looking utterly stupid and ridiculous. You sing songs that you have an emotional attachment to. It's human nature. While there will always be the odd track that performs amazingly well chart wise – especially in a track dominated period such as today – vocal songs will consistently outperform them… a fact that this record once again has revealed.
Konstantin: I really don't know, I always felt it was something special I made with this remix, not in the way of being a commercial hit, more in the way of having a lot of soul and groove combined with a gentle warm pop appeal, similar to classic house records. The song just doesn't need big builds and breakdowns, I think it's unpretentious and doesn't conform to the current sound, so I didn't expect it to perform so well on Beatport. I love producing music which doesn't fit into a typical time or genre scheme and I'm really happy when people like Dennis Ferrer, Kerri Chandler, Laurent Garnier, Green Velvet, Seth Troxler or Sven Weisemann support this. Even more importantly, my girlfriend loves it as well!
I Can See (Konstantin Sibold Remix) is out now on Objektivity – buy from Beatport
