B-Side Weekly: Alesso – “Gillionaire”

Usually when writing about any track I’m about to dig into for an issue of B-Side Weekly, I always make an effort to add some historical context so those readers who might not be familiar with a certain artist or genre will feel more comfortable pushing that play button in the middle of the article. In this week’s edition of B-Side Weekly, this artist is a proper noun any reader on the Relentless Beats website or know who we are should recognize, and if you don’t, you better do some homework.

Alessandro Linbad, AKA Alesso, has had one of the warmest receptions as a new artist to his audience. I mean, how could it not feel dreamlike when you’re mentored by Sebastian Ingrosso of Swedish House Mafia at the beginning of your career? Top that off with a highly successful radio hit “Heroes [We Could Be]” with Tove Lo, being asked personally to open for Madonna, the Queen of Pop, and even more success with his debut album, Forever, it could be said that most 24 year-olds couldn’t handle this type of historically quick success with such substance that Alesso has given us. While Forever hasn’t gone platinum and is sometimes referenced as having mixed reviews from critics, Alesso has had the cat in the bag in perfecting the method to staying relevant.

While not every single has been a number one, and his album currently has no certifications referring to sales, his crossover into pop radio and his constant release of material since his DJ debut in 2011 have resulted in Alesso becoming the next industry hot-shot that everyone and their mother wants to book. You might ask yourself, “how could someone this early in their career have any sort of B-Sides or unreleased material?” In honor of Alesso ‘s historically new-found success, we will be paying attention to the banger found on the set of bonus tracks released on the deluxe edition of 2015’s Forever.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ht03D43pqQw

Alesso – Gillionaire (Original Mix)

“Gillionaire” is one of those tracks that you might blink and miss it if you never knew there was even a deluxe edition of his debut album. While bonus tracks are usually outtakes from the album sessions of the same album, or even older, “Gillionaire” is an entirely instrumental and very peculiar composition that does not necessarily innovate with any fancy bells and whistles, but serves as that essential track you put on your party playlist that has some kind of beat to make way for the songs you want people to here.

That is not to say “Gillionaire” is of filler quality because that is actually quite opposite the case: “Gillionaire” is a 6 minute party-piece with all the snares, tropical beats, and even a classic piano riff equaled to a deceptive drop that changes the mood to a more ambient turn. As the piece becomes more complicated and expands from the repetitive riffs we heard earlier in the song, the menagerie of instruments harks back to its original riff set by the synths. Ending out with a bouncing backbeat, Gillionaire reminds everyone that although it may not be the Nikola Tesla of EDM and innovating all over the place, our good friend Alesso does a great job settling into his role as Thomas Edison: taking the beats we all know and love, and reminding why we keep the party alive.

Connect With Alesso: Facebook | Official Website | Twitter | Soundcloud

Sources: DNA India, “Forever” Rolling Stone Review,