About a month after “Sideways,” DJ Cards is back with “Still Awake,” released October 20th. It features Estonian singer Elise-Maria and centers on the idea of wanting to stay together a little longer when the night is too good to end. The press release describes shimmering synths and soaring melodies, with her delicate vocal floating over an energetic arrangement. DJ Cards is Philadelphia’s Michael Cardamone, a drummer first and a lawyer by day, and this one sits in the melodic house and uplifting trance lane he has stuck with since “Forward,” “After Midnight,” and “Blue Hour.”
As always, the best part of DJ Cards‘ music is the rhythmic intelligence and the great transitions. This is because he is a drummer by nature, and that means he understands the flow of music better than most. The song itself is very energetic, something you would hear blasting on a big JBL speaker by the beach, evoking the sound of the wind itself with how the vocals are filtered to sound airy. The melodies are catchy, and I really enjoyed also how the vocals had some sort of ping-pong delay for some of the more laid-back sections
It’s an interesting follow-up in the run I’ve been covering. “Blue Hour” proved the project could go without vocals, “Sideways” brought them back, and “Still Awake” puts a named guest singer up front. The press materials pitch it for late-night drives and dance floors, which fits the highway angle I mentioned for “Sideways,” and Cardamone says he makes tracks for when you need energy or just need to feel something. I’m curious where he takes it next.