Send "Miguel Migs " Ringtones to your Cell 
| Popmatters |
 The consensus about Bay Area DJ/producer Miguel Migs seems to be this: He’s an exemplar of the house artist: basically a groove machine who has all but mastered the creation of soulful sounds but who is limited by the samey-ness of his ideas and apparent recalcitrance to be pulled into the future. Though Outside the Skyline is an OM release and though Migs has a label of his own (Salted), he has become the poster child for Naked Music, the go-to imprint for mid-tempo, world-influenced chillout that has provided the studio for Migs’ DJ mixes and plenty of fodder for techno snobs to deride. In terms of visual allegories to his music, the computer-generated images of sultry young women in reverie on his album covers are about as on the nose as one can get.Migs, born Miguel Steward, has been a producer since at least the late ‘90s, but Outside the Skyline is only his third proper LP. He’s much better known as a DJ, spinning tunes that sound nearly identical to his own, and as a remix artist. Is Outside the Skyline, which arrives four years after his last full-production album, an evolution in his style? Not even close. But Migs has ironed out the clunky bits and mass-appeal-house clichés of his previous record, Those Things, and has treated his sounds with more vibrancy, which gives Outside the Skyline the air of a more professionally produced and smarter piece than we’re used to hearing from him. It sounds as if Migs took cues from musicians who are one or two rungs above him on the artistry ladder, like Lanu, Jimpster, or Mark de Clive Lowe. Every track on the record features vocalists, some of whom are typical Naked Music hired hands (Lisa Shaw, Aya) and some of whom are not (Meshell Ndegeocello, dancehall veteran Half Pint). Migs has seemingly tailored his songs somewhat to the style of each of his guests. For instance, Ndegeocello, also an accomplished bass player, claims the record’s two funkiest songs, and Bebel Gilberto gets to wiggle through a samba-house number that actually makes Brazilian electronica sound good again. Migs’ songs continue to buckle from lyrics that are underwhelming even for this genre — something that’s kept him from reaching the heights he otherwise could — but there is enough going on instrumentally to ignore them almost completely....full text |
| Clashmusic |
| San Francisco house artist Miguel Migs has cornered the market when it comes to soulful, vocal driven house over the past decade and this, his third long player has him continuing unashamed working within a genre so outdated that not even Sophie Ellis Bextor makes it anymore, obviously a good thing. It takes a precocious talent to bring together vocalists as dispararate as soul singer Meshell Ndegeocello, dancehall legend Half Pint and Brazlian bossa nova artist Bebel Gilberto to make a cohesive flowing album but he he achieves it with some style. Migs’ roots in reggae is also apparent throughout the album through the reggae drum rolls and heavy basslines throughout the album to featured vocalists such as Capelton and Freddie Mcgregor on tracks such as ‘They don’t know’. Mig's is just as adept at uplifting disco as 'Everybody' shows, featuring the smooth vocals of disco diva Evelyn 'Champagne' King, the jazzy basslines and crisp house beats could soundtrack a night out at Studio 54 in its pomp minus the possibility of being turned away at the door for not being attractive enough. With a taste for analogue sounds being so prevalent in current electronic music (see John Tejada’s 'Parabolas'album and the Poker Flat compilation ‘Forward to the past', an album so retro each track was initially recorded onto tape and then digitised for that muffled cassette sound), Mig's jazzy basslines and afro tinged house sound like it was recorded in a totally different era, albeit one more recent than the influences of current post acid house artists such as Boys Noize and Siriusimo, this is sensible house music tailored to home listening rather than tearing up dancefloors and no matter how archaic that may seem, there’s no doubting the sheer abundance of quality on offer here....full text |
| Contactmusic |
| Like a few other niche vibes, Deep House - substitute the "Deep" for "Dad" in some quarters - has something of an image problem. On one level the sound - a tapestry of soul, Latin and disco influences all shaped by trad 4 to the floor beats - is the archetypal soundtrack to a sophisticated night out on the tiles. On another, it's go-nowhere lift muzak, an overblown cocktail of lazy clich's and receding hairline sentiment made for Golf drivers everywhere. As ever the key is in the execution. Miguel Migs is a scene veteran with a pedigree that tells it' own story, with early work for the legendary Naked label leading to remixes for the likes of Britney Spears and Macy Gray. His fourth album, Outside The Skyline continues down the ain't broke don't need fixing line, Migs working his production magic alongside an extensive list of collaborators that includes Evelyn King, Bebel Gilberto and Freddie McGregor. For fans of those early Naked releases, or those who got into the slightly less obscure Disco Kandi tunes of the late nineties and early noughties, there will be plenty of reassuring hallmarks of quality. On Both Tonight and Breakdown Migs unfurls his layers of cool mid-tempo banner, a nonchalant weave of organic retro keys and relentlessly funky bass which resembles - in a good way - the acid jazz heyday of The Brand New Heavies. If that doesn't appeal - and let's remind ourselves after all that it's nearly 2012 and not 1996 - then there may be little point in bracing yourself for the rest. An attempted breakout into macro economic strife and personal politics on The System, complete with bemused sounding Ragga vocals from Capleton, fails to stir much more than a dry Martini, whilst Gilberto delivers little more than a perfunctory Bossa turn on Zuzu. Perhaps the problem with Deep House is that its acolytes simply don't want it to go changing; much of Outside The Skyline could've been playing at some Lower East Side loft party when George Bush was still president, despite some reputable but half hearted attempts at spritzing the formula on the otherwise lush Lose Control. This almost certainly misses the point though. The answer seems to lie in the maxim that Migs simply understands what his audience needs to hear implicitly, and keeps making music that hits their collective spot. It's a focussed work ethic he deserves credit for adhering so closely to, particularly on closer Getaway, the cosmopolitan grooves of Changin' and the almost horizontally relaxed Close Your Eyes. It's in these moments that his giving the people what they want aesthetic is fully realised, and despite being an antiquated notion, the end result is collection of little risk, but undoubted consistency....full text |
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