The Knocks first turned up on my radar when I heard their original hit "Classic" from The Sims 4 radio station. It had everything I wanted in pop disco tune: bright colors, bubbly textures, and endlessly earwormy vocals thanks to a guest spot by fellow duo Powers (so much so that the song doesn't lose any luster even after being translated into Simlish). When I saw that JPatt and B-Roc had a new album out, I had a feeling there could be another song on par with "Classic" contained within, and it turns out I was right. One of The Knocks' greatest assets is their ability to team up with similarly minded folks, and on "Brazilian Soul", they do it again with another tropical house duo, Sofi Tukker. Together, the four artists have put together a gorgeous ode to the spirit and people of Brazil. Sophie Hawley-Weld alternates between extolling her love of the country in Portuguese and English while Tucker Halpern and The Knocks themselves drop in with occasional hype from the sidelines. The rest of the song beautifully crafted and simply a delight to behold, full of billowing synth flourishes, forlorn horn accents, all while being held together by a chunky guitar & bass line.
Best Moment: Every time the song reaches full bloom for the chorus at 0:56 and 2:14 when Sophie drops into "My tambourine in the rhythm of samba / In the heat of December / Oh, Brazil is where I'll go / I think I've got a case of Brazilian soul".