Music Reviews
Best Of by Nyra – Never Learnt
In the saturated digital era, new label launches are a wearying weekly event in electronic music. When they’re accompanied by the words ‘vinyl only’ though, it’s likely the characters behind them are something more than standard twenty-EPs-a-year chancers hoping to make a quick buck. Given the investment alone, the music should firmly back itself, and in the case of Bearweasel’s Dean Muhsin and Irishman Cian Frawley, you get a pair of seasoned artists admirably forming an imprint to steadfastly impart the music that stirs their loins, whatever niche it inhabits. And for their first EP they’ve keenly enlisted the blossoming talent of Nyra, a DJ and producer whose penchant for deep, emotive house music has already seen ear-pricking releases on Freunde De Familie, Fear of Flying and Logistik, and whose Downlo night has seen Wbeeza, Levon Vincent and Secretsundaze’s Giles Smith and James Priestley come back from Sheffield enthusing.
The title track builds gradually from crisp hats, subby stabs and pads, the looped disembodied vocal working its way inexorably into the listener’s subconcious as subtle elements creep into the mix until by half distance there’s a fully-formed groove filling the speakers. Similarly, Funf employs stripped-back beginnings, with warm basslines and choppy percs giving way to carefully-placed chords and slowly revolving, off-kilter notes that flow through the mid-range like lapping waves, cleverly changing the emphasis as the track progresses. Closing track of the trio is Nam Pla, which while on an equally tracky vibe, manages to engage with only the most spartan arrangement: blocky snares, muffled sub and swirling, looping fx hover above filtered fills keeping the vibe the right side of edgy for its six minute length. On this evidence, Never Learnt sounds like a label that knows where it’s heading, and we’re gladly along for the ride.
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Can You Feel It? EP by NY Stomp – Illusion Recordings
Illusion wade into 2012 with their third EP with their stride barely broken as they look forward to their first full year off the back of two already highly-praised EPs from Gary Todd and an eclectic selection of artists on their debut. James Cotterill and Tom Craven’s influences are clear from the outset, wearing their love for all things classic and four-four on their sleeves, and for their next release they’ve added NY Stomp to their roster to carry on the vibe. Dutchman Gerd’s lauded for his 4 Lux records and the quality shows through across two great originals and a trio of remixes that further enhance the imprint’s reputation.
NY House Track’s brisk percs and chords preface female and male spoken vocals that could easily be lifted from a hype-charted early-90s Nervous EP, the pads punctuating the high-range while the synth hits revolve beneath them. A remix as discerning as the original comes from Italian Nicolas, fresh from his labour of love to Nu Groove on Needwant, who takes it deeper and more soulful, with warm chords washing over the bassline, an early morning counterpart to the original’s late-night feel. Second up from NY Stomp is the title track, in turns energetic and moody, as its classic chord progression and horn-like stabs build and release the pressure, more subtle and expansive than its partner. A pair of remixes accompany it from Stateside and the UK, with DJ Aekmael’s keeping focus on the groove while percussive elements ebb and flow, and Illusion’s own James Cotterill and Ross Elliot’s impressive Intergalactic Rudeboy Dub sidelines much of the low end and uses the chords adroitly with a stripped-back, tracky rework.
