One of the nicest surprises this year has brought us so far is Tei Shi‘s latest EP, Verde, released last month on Mermaid Avenue/Double Denim. She managed to display vocal and stylistic range, and both sexiness and innocence, all in only five tracks. The poppiest number here, “Go Slow,” is bright and accessible, and now it has a makeover courtesy of Canadian outfit Blue Hawaii.
The Canadian bunch deconstructs “Go Slow” and they take it to new unexpected places, turning up the BPMs and injecting some jungle breaks, something you wouldn’t directly associate with Tei Shi’s dreamy pop. There’s little left of the original vocals, just some phrases and vocalizations from the chorus, but it’s enough to make it work. They also introduce some jazzy chords over the beat, which sounds like a balancing act between UK garage and poppy R&B.