Calvin Harris - Ready For The Weekend

Sometimes, you could say Calvin Harris has the dream job. Not only is the lanky Scot the darling of the electro-pop-synth scene with a hit album under his belt – he is also capable of convincing 16 beautiful women to strip down to bikinis and act as a “humanthesiser” to promote the album’s title track Ready for the Weekend. And he shows remarkable taste, for while he’s collaborated with big names including Dizzee Rascal on Dance wiv Me and Kylie Minogue, he famously turned down working with Lady GaGa in 2008 because he didn’t like her demo.

In any case, this gem of an album, which reached number one on the UK charts last month, looks set to replicate the success of his 2007 debut I Created Disco, which featured the hit singles Acceptable In The ‘80s and The Girls. That offering shot to the top of the charts and last month Ready for the Weekend did the same in the UK.

In Australia, the single I’m Not Alone is leading the charge, reaching eighth place on the Aria dance music charts before dropping back to 16 this week. It’s sad that the awesome Deadmau5 remix of the track does not feature on my version of the album, as it’s a brilliant and haunting reworking of an already outstanding tune.

The Rain is a funky opener with some freaky sampling, upbeat and club-friendly, and Ready for the Weekend is probably one of the better known tracks on the album, with distinctive female vocals and a funky disco feel. Stars Come Out featuring Ayah is another great track, cute and peppy with a danceable beat, while You Used to Hold Me has a pretty “old skool” feel. Ditto F_lashback_, which rips out the Italo-house style pianos, soaring vocals and slower beats of sleeper hits from the early 90s.

Worst Day featuring Izza Kizza, with its sad litany of mistakes, is another of the better tracks on the album, with a backbeat verging on relaxed drum and bass and sweet male vocals, while Relax is appropriately chilled and funky as the title would suggest. Ayah pops up again on Limits, which I reckon will be another big commercial radio hit, and Burns Night and the last track 5iliconeator are both massive changes of pace, all soulful and slow. Don’t think much of Yeah Yeah Yeah La La La – a rare weak point – but Dance Wiv Me is damned funky and deserves the airplay it’s been getting.

On the whole, it’s a solid album and will no doubt drop some more hits onto clubland before its tenure is out. Check it out …

Behold the “humanthesiser” that Calvin Harris concocted to promote Ready for the Weekend...