The Cocteau Twins are a favorite of mine when I’m in the mood for some ethereal synth laden tracks with Elizabeth Fraser’s half-speaking/half-singing vocals soothing me along the journey.  Half the time she isn’t even saying anything, just using her voice to create a melody.  Goldfrapp is another whom, at times, exudes vocals of this style and has noted the ‘Twins as an influence.  This track was written by Elizabeth in honor of her friend Jake Drake-Brockman (Echo and the Bunnymen, BOM, etc) that died this past September in a motorcycle accident.  About 3 years ago, a good friend of mine was also killed in a motorcycle crash – this one’s for Jake and my friend Robin.

You can listen to the album version and two remixes below. The first by Thighpaulsandra (Julian Cope, Spiritualized, Coil) and the second by Andy Jenks (previously of Alpha and presently of The Flies, Spaceland.) I’m not getting a whole lot of a Cocteau vibe with this track (it’s slightly there) – lovin’ the french vibe.

If you’d like to brush up on your Cocteau, I would suggest checking out Stars and Topsoil, their greatest hits.