There are more than a handful of indications that Vienna, the Austrian city known for its music, may be on the cusp of a new era of global influence. One such example lies in the work of singer-songwriter/producer James Hersey. On his own, Hersey writes the kinds of lilting guitar melodies that shoegazers grin. Paired with a computer or one of his many electronic producer friends and he's the yearning vocalist on a post-disco club jam. UK deep house knob-twiddler jackLNDN does the honors on Hersey's latest, "What I've Done."Growing up in Vienna with one American parent and one Austrian parent, Hersey studied music since age nine, learning the cello, drums and guitar and later studying jazz at conservatory. In a move that seems to typify Viennese cosmopolitanism today, Hersey lived in London, New York, LA and Austin before returning to his hometown nearly three years ago. While he had been dabbling in electronic production himself, it was a remix of his track "Coming Over" by fellow Vienna denizen Filous that alerted the dance music world to his voice and how well it lends itself to a club soundsystem.Signed to Milky Chance's Lichtdicht Records, Hersey is part of a new wave of songwriters from Central Europe who work across genres as they express their lovelorn earnestness through lyrics and appreciation of sounds more thrilling than a guitar and vocal can provide alone. On his SoundCloud page, Hersey follows more producers (Kaytranada, Ten Walls, Sweater Beats, What So Not) than guitar artists who more readily sound like him.For LNDN, an artist more committed to actual deep house records than most who use the hashtag, Hersey provides a solid song to really fuck with. Even while he keeps the original record's guitar hook, his remix of "What I've Done" shows how a producer can improve something simple without dismantling it or knocking it out of balance.Even Mozart could get down with that.James Hersey on SoundCloud // Twitter
jackLNDN on SoundCloud // Twitter
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jackLNDN on SoundCloud // Twitter