Imagine Ron Burgundy straight outta the uterus, before his voice inspired legends and his face made women swoon – a naked bundle of pure potential. This was Future Classic eight years ago, and my my have they grown up. What started as Nathan McLay and his record label soon became a successful touring company as well, giving one man the confidence to wear some classy suits and include a second head to help lead this venture – Chad Gillard. When third member James McInnes linked up with the rest of the gang through FBi, they destroyed many a gig together and soon became known as the Future Classic DJs. So they now had their sass under the bonnet, and all that was left was to grow a gloriously thick moustache – the iconic icing on the cake. Releasing records by Anna Lunoe, Flume, Flight Facilities and others certainly helped, but it’s the Adult Disco parties, FCDJs-headlined nights at Goodgod Small Club, and now this compilation that really do the job. It’s safe to say that the Future Classic DJs are kind of a big deal.

Some might think of compilations as a bit old hat in a time where the internet can chew up and spit out a producer in less time it takes to write a single blog post about them. However, maybe that’s all the more reason to keep compilations around; since an artist’s relevance can burn so quickly, it can’t be a bad thing to give them a chance to swap wick for fuse so that they might blow up at the end of the line instead of fizzling out in melted wax.

Future Classic DJs have certainly done their best to achieve that with this release, on which they’ve included ten exclusive tracks and curated a wonderful progression of moods and musical styles which serve as the perfect spring soundtrack – a delicious tease of what summer has to offer. Slow Hands’ ‘Rhabarbarum’ allows a comfortable drift into the compilation amongst African percussion and cheeky little flicks of guitar scattered around the place, while synths reverberate against the ocean’s peaks and troughs. Soon Perseus pitches down the vocal from Jeremy Glenn’s ‘New Life’ and further soaks us in this vibe. Thank you god of music for tropical mallets, thank you!

Flume’s exclusive track ‘Tropical Sun’ brings forth an image of digital elephants trumpeting in the shallows at the beach, while on their backs, masked dancers twist their bodies, contorting themselves with the groove. Soon after, we meet Poolside and the freakiness all but dissolves, giving way to a floaty disco that tells a tranquil story, though lyrics such as “do you believe our love is true?” belie their carefree melody.

The flow in this compilation keeps developing, traveling through deeper, more contemplative housey tones until we end up at MAM’s cruisy rethinking of Flight Facilities’ ‘With You’ that at times takes away a lot of the constant rhythm that pushed the original along, so when the beat does kick in, you really feel it. Then before you know it, things are faster and groovier than ever with swirling synths, layered vocals, more expressive drums, piano stabs, and of course some sexy bass all building up around lyrics such as “you’ve got to give yourself some hope”.

Then out of nowhere, you’re led to a darker and more minimal place, where the bass makes you move by growling at you rather than holding your hips. You’re led out of this cave and into an eerie valley in a couple of tracks time, but before you know it, FCDJs have reeled you back up into reality with an unexpected final track.

It’s a journey worth taking solo, plus it’s top music for an oh-my-god-it’s-almost-summer-but-not-quite-so-it’s-probably-still-too-chilly-to-get-in-the-pool-but-fuck-it-let’s-do-it-anyway night time pool party.

FCDJsFTW.

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Future Classic DJs compilation is out now. For more info head to futureclassic.com.au