EP Review: Room Service - Citizen

Just in time for the (very delayed and probably very brief) British summer comes this hot and steamy release on Love Fever Records from Citizen.

Love Fever were born out of underground parties in London's east end and their sound is heavy on a sleazy erotica inspired by those parties and liberally applied to tech-house. Citizen is the alter-ego of South Londoner Laurence Blake and here he delivers three hot and sweaty electronic workouts.

The EP opens with title track 'Room Service' on the a-side, a large echoey track with soft, soulful vocals in juxtaposition to rough layers of distorted synthesiser. Blake teams up with Detroit's Jimmy Edgar on 'Deeper Touch' and they create a slightly softer but snappy techno track with snippets of drum patterns and bass layered together whilst a female vocal is twisted and manipulated over the top.

The second solo cut and final track on the EP is Citizen's 'You Give Me That Something' and it's the best of the three. A cow bell melody builds an warm, open atmosphere whilst another soulful male vocal builds to a drop that rewards listeners with warm pads and a deep, dubby bass line. It's the most fully realised track here and wraps you in a warm stillness perfect for outdoor dancing. Roll on summer!

Room Service is released on Love Fever on Monday.

Album Review: Confess - Twin Shadow

Image source: Metrojolt

If Twin Shadow's debut album Forget was a collection of brilliant synth-laden hook heavy R&B new wave then new album Confess successfully takes every single element up a notch.

I was definitely a fan of Forget but had nowhere near the affection for it that I've already developed for Confess in just a couple of weeks. Where Forget benefited from Chris Taylor of Grizzly Bear's hazy production, Twin Shadow's real world personality George Lewis Jr. takes the reigns here. He never feels anything less than in complete control. Confess is a tight album of eighties new wave bass and Lewis' impassioned vocals that punch through the wall between the record and the listener - it's hard not to feel everything he bellows down the microphone.

Interestingly this album actually feels a little less focused, with greater variety than the last. There's a gruff rawness in 'Run My Heart', for example - it's like someone took Springsteen and injected it into a Flock of Seagulls record, and you can even actually imagine the lyrics coming from either artist, yet the staggered drum beats and swirling atmospherics make it Twin Shadow's record through and through.

And the only criticism you could make of Twin Shadow is that at moments you can pin the inspiration perhaps a little too clearly at time - the verse of 'The One' sounds so like Morrissey that the use of the electronics is the only thing that gives away that it can't be him. The hooks on this record are so strong though, and the influences so broad, the overall record so bright that nothing feels derivative.

When the pieces come together Confess is a genre agnostic celebration of emotion and dance. Listen to the guitar solo crash in over the throbbing live bass and massive orchestral synths on 'Beg For The Night' and try not to turn up the volume. The climatic closer 'Be Mine Tonight' borrows a touch of the bass sound from Berlin's 'Take My Breath Away' and gives it to a beautiful curtain closing ballad. It's such an utterly irresistible ballad that it even throws in a key change that makes Lewis' optimistically needy vocal hard to resist.

Just like this record, then.

Confess is out now, available from Amazon.co.uk on CD, LP and MP3 [affiliate links].

Stream Confess below on Spotify [account required]:

EP Review: Kisses - dOP

Having just got back from on tour this new EP on Circus Company sees dOP bring back some new influences and a fresh sound.

'Your Feelin'' on side-A is a synth-pop / soul / house blend that conjures thoughts of sweaty nights of unfulfilled promise on the dance floor. It is the result of meeting of minds with Pillowtalk when in San Francisco - this being what the two groups ended up collaborating on once dOP were back in Berlin. Pillowtalk have already impressed with their mixture of house and R&B and this shines just as bright - it's a strangely sparse track for either group. The restraint creates an uneasy tension, giving the vocals a neediness that feels like a vice gripping the vocalist tighter so he can't escape.

'Kisses' is similarly withdrawn but more reflective. The gentle looping chords and deep drums form a very minimal texture to a track that sees the trio pause for thought and give thanks. It's both deep and contemplative, bittersweet in its execution, gradually building around a mood.

The Kisses EP also comes with an acapella version of 'Your Feelin'' and an instrumental of 'Kisses', but your focus should really be on the two original versions, which boast a greater subtlety than expected.

Kisses is released on Monday through Circus Company, available for pre-order from Amazon.co.uk on MP3 [affiliate link].

EP Review: Baby Let Me Finish - Bwana

Having previously signed tracks to Diplo's Mad Decent this is Bwana's debut release for Somethinksounds. And it's a pretty good start for the 21 year old Canadian-born kid from Leeds.

'Baby Let Me Finish' is a tight but soulful dub-step track built around a pitched up female vocal. The style feels a little like the sunny tracks of Joy Orbison meets the vocals of Burial. This is a spacious track - the filtered bass and treble heavy claps create a lot of ambience but the cut-up vocal sound adds complexity and wraps it up into a soulful package.

Three additional mixes make up the release including one masquerading as an original track in 'Nami Swan'. This transforms it into a Euro deep house with a melancholic bassline and early nineties synthetic drums. It's a brilliant demonstration of Bwana's versatility.

The other remixes remain truer to the original. The 14th Remix retains much of the original but gives it a less stuttering feel - it is just a step closer to rolling drum 'n' bass territory and here the vocal is more natural with less tweaking.

The final mix - the Black Orange Juice remix - is slower, with a bouncing bass line. It plays with layers of the vocal, adding different pitches and a new mail counterpart. It is more commercial than the others but sadly lacks a lot of the thrill of the original.

Overall Baby Let Me Finish is a quality release. Given his apparent versatility it will be interesting to see what direction Bwana evolves his sound into.

Baby Let Me Finish is released on 30 July through Somethinksounds.

Single Review: Eroica - Royalty

Royalty's debut EP caught my ear a few months back, duo Chesca and Yorke creating a selection of polished dark Italo pop moments. If that was the promise this might be the pay off.

Whatever slight rough edges existed on their debut EP are nowhere to be found here. Title track 'Eroica' emerges from the depths like a seductive harlot through crude oil - shimmering jet black and irresistible. Dark stabs of grit and bass punctuate the rhythm whilst the vocals encourage us to kiss on the dance floor. It's almost all a bit too much, big snare drums drowning in reverb against cinematic melodies and amped emotions.

Along with the original and an instrumental version Yorke turns in his own Atlantean mix, which slows it down to a mean funk - this is what R&B would sound like if it was made for grimey basements with beers and Jack rather than stadiums and champagne flutes. An incessant key tone marks out the chorus with a hint of determination that perfectly reflects that of the vocals.

The other original track comes in the form of 'Vector Glide'. The name befits the track's straight lines and menacing atmosphere. Opening with thick analogue bass and crisp hard drums it is what your Tron dreams sound like - an electronic gravy of Com Truise and John Carpenter.

Royalty's sleazy cosmic pop hits just right - if you like Chromatics, Glass Candy et al you won't be disappointed.