To me, Yellow Claw are one of the originators of the format of dance music as we know it today. It was their collaboration with Rochelle, on "Shotgun", that introduced variations in rhythm, heavy basses and instrumental breaks to me. It's the way every track on the radio is built up now. I thought that Yellow Claw would be one of those acts at the front of this sound. Perhaps even pioneering in it, but they only popped up with new hit singles every once in a while. Their career has been impressive nevertheless. Because my view is very much directed to mainstream radio and chart songs, it's kind of going by unnoticed to me. But in the clubs, these guys have reached the top and ended up being signed to Diplo's label. They have just released a new single called "Love & War" featuring Yade Lauren. I couldn't wait to hear it. It is everything you would expect from a Yellow Claw song. The song is neatly divided into its own little sections, jumping from bits with vocals to the instrumental breaks. It's got high commercial potential and a great, strong vocalist. I could copy/paste the last paragraph again to describe the negatives of the song as well, because every bit of the song shows that Yellow Claw have become predictable. I think they can get away with it if the follow up is a little more innovative, but I do have to express my worry that they might be thinking they've found a winning formula and get stuck in it. We're going to have to wait to find out and enjoy this song until then, because putting that one little worry aside, it is still a very good track.
