Usually when someone is twiddling knobs in a garret, trying to combine Tune A with Tune B to create a Tune X smasheroo, the results are somewhat blah. But occasionally, something too, too wondrous occurs. And heavens to Biggie, this is what has happened with Dan Black’s HYPNTZ, released as a white label yesterday, but downloadable here for precisely nought pence. Don’t say we nevah do nuffink for you.

Here is why it is brill.

a) The first time you hear it, you worry that it is all a bit earnest and white bread. The second time you listen to it, however, all you care about is getting to the chorus, which somehow turns ‘Biggie, Biggie, can’t you see, sometimes your words just hyp-no-tiiiise meeeeeeeee’ into a strangely sweet and plaintive statement. Considering the hulkritudinous qualities of Notorious B.I.G. and his rather discreditable brushes with illegal goings-on, this is something of an accomplishment.

For the non-remembering amongst you, this is what Biggie looked like.

Do you see? This is not a man to sing plaintively to. He would laugh his big fat jowly chops right in your face. And yet, when Dan Black does it, it is good.

b) Strings. This point is not to be underestimacised. They are swishy which adds to the mournfulness. This song is quite big on mournful, which is odd considering the lyric sheet for the original song contains such gems as ‘Every cutie wit a booty bought a Coogi’, the rather unprogressive ‘Tits and bras, menage-a-trois, sex in expensive cars’ and the rather messy-sounding ‘Poppa freakin, not speakin? Leave that ass leakin.’

c) The choir. As Lykke Li has already shown us this month, if you are looking to imbue your single with an eyes-to-the-heavens, uplifting aspect, you simply need to nip down to Westminster Cathedral, snaffle some winsome kiddiewinks and get them to sing all over your backing track. The fact that this still pushes buttons nearly 40 years after You Can’t Always Get What You Want has not escaped the notice of Dan Black, so well done him.

Anyhoo. Here is the download. Right click to save in the usual fashion.

NB* We are predicting big things, in a Brits-love-mournful-pop-music, summer-is-fading way.

NB* Dan has also done a cover of These Things Take Time which is going to have Morrissey fanboys wetting their bed with passive-aggressive torment.

NB* There is a video to accompany HYPNTZ, but it is a bit ‘naïve’. You can see it here. We would like someone to give Dan some money to make a proper one so he can go to number one.