EP Review: Neon EP - H.O.S.H.

​This latest EP from Diynamic comes on the back of a successful season in Ibiza this summer in the form of their Neon Night events. With that in mind it packs the Neon edge and kind of sugar-rush electronic disco you would expect.

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​Neon EP - H.O.S.H.

Opening track 'No-One' features Malonda on guest vocals and is a soulful workout of bumping bass and clattering synths, the vocals are so-so however - well delivered but paper-thin.

The other remaining original track here is what really justifies this release a place on these pages those. 'Woohoo' is a pulsating slab of irresistible funk. Low-end melodies and lots of reverb meet a falsetto vocal duet from Ost & Kjex. A warm juggernaut of a synth rumbles pleasantly through your guts before Ost & Kjex's slightly cheesy but infectious "Oooh, wee-ohhhh" chorus.

Two dubs feature on side two - the vocal-less version of 'No-One' out-shining the original while 'Woohoo' retains a considerable chunk of the vocal and therefore exhibits little change.

It's electronic pop more than anything, but sometimes you have to respect some well-done pop music.

Neon EP is released on Monday but you can grab it now on MP3 from Amazon.co.uk [affiliate link]. Check out a preview of 'Woohoo' below:​

EP Review: What I Might Do - Ben Pearce

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​What I Might Do - Ben Pearce

​As we move into Autumn in the UK you can sense that new introspective calm that tends to follow summer. And it almost seems to be affecting the music coming out now, like Christmas does but instead of festive cheer much of what I've been listening to is fuelled by a bluesy sense of reserved consideration. Lots of music for dancing on your own, then.

It is a mood that has culminated in me playing around with DJ sets of a kind of blues influenced house - Morgan Geist's Storm Queen releases are a good example of the sound, but Ben Pearce's new EP would fit right in too.

'What I Might Do' starts with soft, pensive keys but is soon all rumbling bass and snappy, slightly pissed-off vocals. The music forms a shell around these vocals, conjuring a perfect background but it is the vocal that takes centre stage. The soulful verse packs sufficient feeling to survive the repetition it endures and the overall track is hard not to love. And as I said - it's pretty perfect for this time of year.

Along with a club mix and a radio edit of the original the EP comes with three additional remixes. Harry Wolfman's mix mostly stays true to the original - there is a slightly nineties vibe to the bass and the vocals are used a little more cautiously - it is an approach that works well. Adam Shelton's mix is darker, taught synth melodies and a robotic bass adding a layer of paranoia absent from the original, though it lacks the appeal of the other versions here. Finally Bonar Bradberry takes a more muted route, giving things a deep, dubbed feel and ending with some dark acid work.

What I Might Do is released on Monday through MTA Records, available to pre-order from on MP3 from Amazon.co.uk [affiliate link].​

EP Review: Mixed Fortunes 3 - Rory Phillips

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​Rory Phillips, preparing for a spot of wiff waif presumably!

Rory Phillips has been delivering the goods through his DJ mixes and remixes for a while now and this original production is thankfully no different. This is the third instalment in the Mixed Fortunes series and this time Rory has teamed up with Martin Dubka.

Dubka is known for producing Ali Love and additional production work to some of Aeroplane's recent output, so he comes with form. Here the two of them team up on opening track 'Don't Stop', a staggeringly infectious, sweaty track. This has the same hard, fully-maxed treble kick to it of DJ T or M.A.N.D.Y. at their best, but Rory puts it to work on a funk bass line loaded with pure swagger. The vocoder vocal and staccato synth don't do anything particularly new - they just do it really well. Keep it clean, tight and sexy.

Back on his own on the flip, Rory turns in 'E-Bow' - a considerably slower, more atmospheric track. It puts some stunted live bass to work against a wall of ambient reverb-heavy analogue synths. Very different to 'Don't Stop' - this is closer to rock music and dub, and it shows off Phillips' production chops brilliantly as well as the capabilities of the E-Bow itself.

​Mixed Fortunes 3 is released on Monday, preview it via the Soundcloud player below:

EP Review: Bahamas EP - Luca Bacchetti

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​Bahamas EP - Luce Bacchetti

​Luca Bacchetti's Bahamas EP represents his debut release on the Culprit label and here he takes an analogue, retro-inspired path.

A-side 'A Night In Nassau' is a real sunset turning-point type track. It starts off beach soundtracking disco with a funky head-nodding bass (think Alan Braxe & Fred Falke's Running / "Intro") with some silky vocals. Laid back piano contributes to a warm, house vibe. There is a dark, grimey break halfway through though and the sudden stark percussion and acid bass lines create a nice contrast to the body of the track.

Two remixes of 'A Night In Nassau' feature. The 'A Late Night Mix' is a lower, more obviously house influenced affair - deep electronic bass line, cow bells and a clearer vocal turn this into a very different, but equally strong, version. The final dub version is very similar to the original, less some extra touches - gone are the muted guitars.

Also featured is a second original track - 'Such A Dreamer'. The massive drums and analogue synth work immediately give this more of an eighties vibe Italo vibe. The backing may be hard and fast but there is still a warm disco softness to the melodies that break through in the middle section. I wouldn't play it indoors - it just might blow the roof off.

The Bahamas EP is released​ through Culprit on Monday - preview 'Such A Dreamer' on Soundcloud below:

EP Review: New Ships - Benoit & Sergio

Benoit & Sergio have become one of my favourite duos in the past year or so. Their EP releases on both Visionquest and DFA have contained moments of sheer brilliance.

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New Ships - Benoit & Sergio​

This new release comes out on Visionquest, following up on their Where The Freaks Have No Name EP. That release featured the gloriously disgruntled love-lost-to-the-k-hole anthem 'Walk And Talk', so hopes are high for this new one...

New Ships opens with 'Lipstick & Lace' - a frisky, funk strut with vocals dedicated to an irresistible female. You know, the kind that wants to make you do the mash-potato. Benoit & Sergio's talent is always in their particular blend of warm bass with cool, metallic synths played in a funky way - as shown in great effect to the piano-embellished outro here.

In my opinion though the duo are at their best when the melodies are allowed to dominate. Which is exactly what they do on 'Not In Your Nature', a track of passive-aggressive missives. The vocals and pads are layered beautifully here, giving the sensation of swimming through the thick, queasy feeling you get in the knot of your stomach when something goes badly askew... It's strangely relaxing yet the whole song is clearly about being taken advantage of.

The EP's title track has a distinctive, prominent looping bass line that performs the foundations for some semi-liquid guitar that almost oozes and yet still feels brittle around the edges. If Daft Punk made music for a downer with massive bass it would probably sound like this, the vocal a cry for help - "So many nooses around my neck, as I stare at the sea waiting for new ships" - the music the sound of dancing on through it.

Another terrific EP. Now give me an album.

​New Ships is released through Visionquest on 15 October.