Braille – The Storm

Label: Glass Table

While Praveen Sharma’s name might not be a frequent occurrence on the dance scene, the man certainly knows how to keep busy. Besides running Percussion Lab and releasing via non-dance project Praveen, Sharma’s no newcomer to the dance world. Many will know him best as one half of Sepalcure alongside the unfathomably prolific Machinedrum, yet Sharma’s two dance releases to date have both been worthwhile offerings; bassy takes on house sounds packed with soul, with highlights including The Year 3000 on Rush Hour and his ace Hotflush E. Two years on Sharma makes a welcome return as Braille, fusing kinetic rhythms with an impressive range of vocal and acoustic samples, to ultimately mixed results.

It’s worth pointing out that Braille has never really put out any bangers. Instead, his best cuts, such as the lush, relatively relaxed A Meaning or the stunning emotive rush of Breakup were impressive because of their attention to texture and detail. Sure, they were danceable, but the songs stood out because of deft sample manipulation and clever structure rather than raw muscularity. A couple of the tracks on The Storm are clearly targeted at the dancefloor, and as a result the EP is a bit of a mixed bag. Opener The Storm starts well, revolving chimes married to clean synth stabs and a typical set of great vocal work. But despite the impressive production, particularly the textured percussive work, it never convinces as a whole. The core elements wear thin, failing to keep up the energy over five minutes and lacking any progression to speak of, while others, such as the jazzy chords that occupy the track's final minutes, seem somewhat out of place. Later At a Glance suffers from the same problems, where rising synths and clever vocal clips create an urgency only to be undermined by an incongruous acid line. This odd addition has the unfortunate effect of detracting from the organic soundcraft that makes Braille’s work so interesting in the first place. When the dynamics of such busy music aren’t exactly right, the result is too dense to really enjoy (a criticism that could also be levelled at a few of Sepalcure’s productions).

 

The Storm / Me & U / At a Glance / Casper

However it’s by no means all bad news, as the other two tracks remind the listener just how great Sharma is when he’s on form. Standout Me & U has atmosphere in spades and crucially each element is given the space it deserves; the rousing gospel-style sample is perfectly placed alongside drowsy pitched-down vocals, while crisp percussive accents are all that’s necessary to compliment the lush arrangement of keys and samples. It’s a really impressive piece of music, which makes one wonder how the other tracks would sound had they been given a little more breathing room. Closer Casper is another great piece: while obvious parallels will be drawn given the 2step woodblock pattern and melancholy atmosphere, Sharma makes the track his own with gorgeous vocal manipulation throughout, whether in the foreground or muttering away deep in the mix. It’s also a deft exercise in structure; the energy slowly mounts around the 3-minute mark as the snares hit harder, the ghost voices (perhaps humorously hinted at by the title) grow louder and busier, before a soft synthline closes the track out with a sigh.

Given such a clear divide between the success of these tracks, it’s clear that Sharma is a very talented producer who needs to play more to his strengths, and perhaps pay more attention to the use of space in his compositions. Of course this is only one reviewer’s opinion, and the EP is a worthwhile listen for its successes; those blissful organic soundscapes that sit happily just outside the dance mainstream.

6/10

12 Best EPs of 2011

Best of 2011

EPs

Singles

Albums

We’ve had a mammoth year for Electronic and Dance music, and the EP format has not only seen a huge amount of great releases but also some redefining ones; from dance classics which are essentially triple A-sides (Mosca, Scuba, Jacques Greene) to releases which are LPs in all but name, like Floating Points’ staggering late-entry Shadows. Here are my 12 favourite EPs of the year, with links to my original review where available. The list is in no particular order, because when it comes down to the very best of the year, they’re all fantastic. Here’s to a great 2012.

DjRUM – Mountains

Mountains Pt 1

On this spectacular EP DjRUM finally made good on all the promises made by his early work, producing four varied and exquisitely produced cuts situated somewhere between Dubstep, Garage and Ambient.

Floating Points –Shadows

Sais

With Shadows, Floating Points produced what is sure to be one of the most lasting EPs of the year, including distended experimental pieces fusing Techno, Jazz influences and references to today’s nebulous Bass scene. Above all, it was his finest release to date, and sounded utterly like nothing else.

Braille – A Meaning

Breakup

If Sepalcure’s full-length didn’t quite meet my expectations this year, Praveen Sharma’s debut EP as Braille certainly exceeded them. Showing a straight-up House muscle unseen on the duo’s deviations, here Braille amazed with a selection of dancefloor powerhouses that showed a skill evident on Sepalcure’s compositions but a sound entirely Sharma’s own.

Jacques Greene –Greene01

Motivation

This has been a great year for Greene and the Canadian Bass set, who brought a whole new meaning to RnB sampling. Not content to rest on his laurels after the killer Another Girl, here Greene focussed his attentions elsewhere, issuing on this White Label release not only the best RnB inflected track of the year in Motivation, but some fantastic forays outside the RnB bubble on this Triple-A side.

Octo Octa – Let Me See You

Let Me See You

The 100% Silk label has been flying high this year, and nowhere is this shown more clearly than in Octo Octa’s gorgeous debut EP. Every track on here is a winner, from the fantastic old-school sounds of the title track to end of the night stomper Coldwaves by way of the utter brilliance of EP standout I’m Trying.

Sepalcure – Fleur

No Think

I’ve already discussed my opinions on Sepalcure’s full-length, but at the beginning of the year their Fleur EP was a fierce mission statement. Defining the ill-defined Bass sound with lush and beautiful compositions, here the pair really flexed their muscles, veering from the rich beats of the title track to Ambient closer Inside by way of surprising Techno stunner No Think.

Bok Bok – Southside

Silo Pass

Night Slugs didn’t have quite as big a year in 2011 as they did in 2010, but their few releases like EPs from Bok Bok and Jam City continued their mind-bending sounds. On the Southside EP, label-head Bok Bok mixed Bass and Dubstep and Grime traits to create something gritty, brilliant, and utterly unique.

Downliners Sekt – Meet The Decline

Rising Saudade

The anonymous group completed their three-part series of free EPs this year with Meet The Decline, their most accomplished release to date. Across the four tracks Downliners Sekt deconstructed popular Dance and Electronic tropes with unerring precision and skill, creating a brilliant set of dusty, fascinating tracks which offer gorgeous worlds to explore.

Mosca – Wavey

Orange Jack

It’s been a great year for Mosca, with his flawless double-A side Done Me Wrong / Bax dominating the sets of all the best DJs this year. On the Wavey EP, he released a surprising but brilliant set of Techno tunes that will be sure to fill up dancefloors in the year to come.

Burial – Street Halo

Stolen Dog

After a much-felt absence, the king of dusty and emotive Dubstep returned for his first solo release in four years. Every track here is a stunning construction of his trademark DIY percussion and deeply atmospheric sounds, from the late-night dance cut Street Halo to the gorgeous and melancholy Stolen Dog.

Scuba – Adrenalin

Adrenaline

Hotflush head Paul Rose finally came out of his shell this year, turning from his normal cerebral dance cuts to Adrenaline, which essentially made Trance cool for the first time in over ten years. Add this to a killer couple of tunes on the B-side (including the fantastically groovy Never), and you’ve got one of the most impressive and enjoyable releases of the year.

Lunice – One Hunned

I See U

Lunice was another producer to emerge from the Canadian ether this year, releasing a sexy selection of Hip-Hop infused Bass cuts, none more sinister and alluring than summer anthem I See U.

Sepalcure – Sepalcure

Pencil Pimp

See Me Feel Me

Breezin

Sepalcure’s two members, Travis Stewart and Praveen Sharma, have had a very successful year. Under his Machinedrum moniker, Stewart released one of the summer’s best LPs in the form of the footwork-referencing Room(s), whilst Sharma’s second release of the year as Braille, A Meaning EP was one of the most solid and satisfying dance EPs I’ve heard of late. Added to this, as Sepalcure the pair released the Fleur EP early this year, fusing their respective Bass and House styles to craft a lush sound that really stood out from the crowd.

The prolific pair are on such a roll this year that it was with heavy anticipation that I listened to their debut LP for the first time, expecting great things from two who have already offered so much. After spending some time with the album, I wouldn’t say I was massively disappointed, but my (admittedly stratospherically high) expectations weren’t met either. The Sepalcure LP showcases some of the duo’s best work to date, but it also contains a surprising amount of tracks which don’t quite seem up to scratch, either weighed down by too many heavy textures or curiously directionless and indistinct.

I don’t mean to say this is a bad album, because the LP has an awful lot going for it. The songs are generally tight and well-produced, continuing the distinctive Sepalcure approach of adding a textural lushness and warmth to the all-too-often cold world of contemporary Bass and House albums. Added to this, some of these tracks are absolutely brilliant. Lead single Pencil Pimp is a stunning bass construction, running an intoxicating earworm of a vocal sample over propulsive percussion and a gorgeous mesh of synths that swoop around the soundfield. It also contains the little elements that made Sepalcure’s early work so special; low-key vocal samples, clicks and organic noises that bring the central sounds to life, making the song feel vibrant and warm rather than a collection of generic layers.

Sepalcure offer some other gems spread out through the LP. The Who sampling See Me Feel Me is a dusty, low-key affair, tapping into some sultry RnB vibes with a real attention to space in the track. It also serves as a reminder that Sepalcure can do great things with a few well-tuned textures, and might leave you questioning why so many tracks on the album are so crammed full of different sounds. Another tune here that demands attention is the beautiful and beatless closer Outside, which somewhat recalls the similarly ambient closing track of Room(s). It’s a desolate piece with great ambient sounds and lost voices, and is the clearest example of Sepalcure really stepping outside of their comfort zone here; a brave move that really pays off. Unfortunately, this is essentially the only point in the album the pair really try something new.

That’s not to say there are no new sounds here. There are quite a few tracks here incorporating less treated synths, bitcrushed effects and dubstep wobbles. However, it doesn’t really tend to pay off in these tracks. In The One, the synths sound clumsily implemented and a little on the nose, far from Sepalcure’s usual subtle and detailed style. The same could be said of later cut Hold On, in which a distressingly simple synth-line overlays fairly generic percussion and vocals. The only point they really nail this style is on Breezin, where a complimentary synthline and bass wobble underpin call-and-reply vocal samples to great effect, before the track breaks down magnificently into a more richly textured percussive field with another fantastic vocal line. It’s a formidable track, just as sleek and rewarding as their previous experimentation with these synths on Fleur’s No Think, and it’s a shame it’s the only point where they really get this sound right.

That covers most of what I have to say about this album, because unfortunately the rest of the tracks are rather unnecessary and indistinct. Whereas each gem on their EPs could be absorbed with ease, the long-play format means that the weaker songs get seriously lost here, and songs like Eternally Yrs and Yuh Nuh See are weighed down by heavy textures and a lack of variation, sounding like less exciting versions of other great tracks on the album. This is especially galling on a song like Carrot Man, where the potential is clear from the genuinely fantastic vocal and guitar samples laced through the track which just become loss in a directionless bed of messy-sounding synths and percussion.

There are clearly some fantastic tracks on this LP, but even those don’t add anything hugely to the existing (and brilliant) Sepalcure canon thus far. Few changes are made to their sound and the heaping on of heavier layers means these tracks are also far from a refinement of their style. While little here is inherently bad, with expectations running so high from their previous output this LP really does feel like a disappointment, and after spending a long time with the album it’s hard to know what it gives you that you couldn’t get in a more interesting and stylish fashion in their earlier EPs.

6.5/10

Feature: Guest Mix

The second of many guest mixes by White Noise's very own resident DJ, Gully Moreland. This is a gorgeous blend of House, Garage and Bass and includes some of my very favourite tracks at the moment, featuring a good few that will come out in next week's October roundup. So kick back and enjoy!

Tracklist:

Braille - A Meaning
Julio Bashmore - Battle For Middle You
Eats Everything - Entrance Song
Huxley - Shower Scene
Classixx feat. Karl Dixon - Into The Valley (Julio Bashmore Remix)
SCB - Loss
Coat of Arms - Is This Something

The whole mix is downloadable from Soundcloud, and you can look forward to some exciting things happening for both G-More and White Noise very soon.

Dance and Electronic Roundup September – The Present

And here’s part two of the roundup, encompassing the freshest dance and electronic tracks of the last month or so. And trust me, with these tunes the next month is going to be very, very good.

Download the whole playlist on mp3 here.

Mosca – Done Me Wrong

Without question one of the biggest tunes of the year, Mosca’s (just out) first solo single is something that has to be heard to be believed. After a top-notch intro featuring, of all things, a built-in rewind, this tune settles into an easy 4/4 garage throwback, anchored by a particularly sticky bassline. What really makes this track though is Mosca’s unbelievable skill chopping up vocals, ensuring this tune will not leave your ears for a long, long time. If you dig it, check out the similarly excellent B-side, Bax.
PS - Check out two free and chilld new Mosca tracks here.

Scuba – Adrenalin

Kicking off with a very fresh single from Hotflush head Scuba, this track is a perfect fusion of the styles most prevalent in UK dance music at the moment. A simple 4/4 beat and a wide range of percussion is twinned with a bassy repeated vocal, soon supplemented with an acid Roland synthline, recalling the euphoric Chicago sound at its finest. The track is then submerged and a fantastic vocal hook slowly surfaces, before breaking wave-like back into the main track euphorically. Showcasing the current trend of abandoning showy drops in favour of restrained layering and thoughtful but simple production, this is an easy contender for single of the year.

Blawan – What You Do With What You Have

After cracking dancefloors wide open with Done Me Wrong, Blawan shows not only his talent but also his versatility in his second superb release of the year. Classic acid house stylings are smashed up by enormous industrial beats, with more of Blawan’s unique and brilliant vocal chopping.

Pangaea – Hex

Moving to darker waters for a new cut from the head of the on-point Hemlock label, this new release kicks off with a racing garage beat and a paranoid knife-edge synthline. Aggressive and time-stretched reggae samples ramp up the tension to craft a fantastically dark tune that deserves a place in the collection of any DJ worth his salt.

Detroit Swindle – The Wrap Around

Detroit Swindle - Starvin' EP (Saints & Sonnets) by Detroit Swindle

(This track isn't on youtube, but the mp3 is still included on the playlist downloadable above, and here is a preview on soundcloud)

Not released until Christmas, this track has been doing the rounds recently (I found it on Huxley’s RA charts), but I’m justified in putting it up here already for the simple fact that it’s absolutely enormous. The Dutch duo craft a classic bass intro, a woozy synth wash with a light beat and a vocal line not permitted to complete its phrasing. However just after the one-minute mark, the track drops out into a huge, bouncy bassline that is guaranteed to get anyone moving. Then out come the vocals, and the central bassline is played with and bitcrushed exquisitely. This one really is dancefloor perfection.

Eats Everything – Entrance Song

This track almost passed me by but I’m glad I paid attention because this is a masterclass in production. In a similar fashion to the previous track, a fairly predictable intro gives way to dancefloor brilliance when the vocal line is pitch-shifted up over a bridge and gives way to a dark and brilliant bouncing beat just after the two-minute mark. The beat is fantastic but it’s really the vocal sampling that makes this track, stretching and contorting to stellar effect over and over across the course of this great tune.

Braille – Breakup

Another track that’s been a real favourite of mine over the last month, from one half of NY’s fantastic bass outfit Sepalcure. A surprising range of great vocal lines are combined over a powerful beat and a tense synth line, keeping the track fresh, pacey, and always brilliant.

Jacques Greene – I Like You

It’s official: Jacques Greene can do no wrong. After fronting the bass assault on dance music earlier this year with the indescribably perfect Another Girl, Greene’s new EP consists of three stellar tracks, and this is the best. Classic bassy beats vie for dominance with a vibrant dancing synth-line, all mixed with the ‘I like you’ vocal, pitched down so low you just can’t quite know what to make of it. Either way this track is another restrained and beautiful piece of dance perfection from the bass kingpin.

Octo Octa – Let Me See You

(This track isn't on youtube, but the mp3 is included on the playlist downloadable above. I’ve included another excellent Octo Octa track,I’m Trying, on the youtube playlist))

One of my most played songs this month, this track just gets everything so right. A great vocal line introduces an old school breakbeat, followed by ecstatic rave piano chords and characteristic whooping. When the cascading synths lace themselves over the arrangement, I really feel like I could let this track play forever. Not only this, but the track is edited with beautiful precision, keeping it continuously fresh and new. One not to miss by any means.

Rustie – Ultra Thizz

Rustie’s unacceptable day-glo exuberance crosses so many lines here, and you can either go with it or not. Sounding a bit like someone speedballing before playing Super Mario, the colours Rustie paints are almost blindingly bright, but if you can stomach that then this is a gorgeously constructed and utterly unique track.

Braille – A Meaning EP

A Meaning

Riverbed

Breakup

With only a single release to his name so far (the excellent The Year 3000 from earlier this year), Praveen Sharma found a high place in my good books early on. You can’t really judge an artist from one single, but add to his credentials his place in the roster of the on-point Hotflush label, and the fact that he is one half of NYC bass duo Sepalcure (a White Noise favourite) along with Travis Stewart (Machinedrum), and it wasn’t hard to work out good things were to come from Sharma’s debut EP.

Lead single A Meaning lays Sharma’s intentions bare early on; within 10 seconds the first vocal sample states “House music” with an authority, and in a post-dubstep landscape where two-step is the hot sound (aside from Berlin’s ongoing love affair with the 4/4 beat), these immaculate house constructions are welcome and satisfyingly stable. However Sharma hasn’t abandoned the staples of what Sepalcure’s EPs just so good in the first place, these are house tracks that continue the high standard of perfectly tuned production and brilliantly nuanced details throughout, these tracks just happen to also be more danceable than Sepalcure’s tricky numbers.

Back to A Meaning, we hear a solid beat coupled with a glorious range of percussive detail, best heard on a good system (even better in a club, no doubt). The vocal line’s woozy pitchshift adds crunk flavourings but never derail this precise and simple track. Second track Riverbed offers a pacier and more subtle listen. Out of place tribal drums undermine expectations at the start but rapidly give way to a fantastically driven beat with a gorgeous rising synth-line that knocks the whole composition slightly off-kilter and ups the tempo, just before the track settles into a super-satisfying and beautifully detailed groove. After the first track which was admirable in its simplicity, it’s gratifying to hear a more complex composition that still packs a powerful dancefloor punch.

Things get even better with my personal favourite cut coming next, the emotive and forceful Breakup. The punchy beat contrasts fantastically with sped-up soul keys, and the achingly universal vocal line “why should we break up” gives way to a lush and powerful sound that isn’t quite topped elsewhere on the EP. Final cut Chain Gang is quicker but also contains more space, with rough tones and plinking keys gliding over a deep sub-bass pulse.

My expectations were high for this release but Sharma has proved himself a powerful force without Stewart’s co-production. Especially notable is how successful he is in combining the warm tones of the house beats with the woozy synths and choppy samples of today’s bass scene. It’s a stellar debut, every track has a steady supply of gorgeous details to admire for the bass and house-heads at home, while needless to say it’s an essential release for any DJs looking for something fresh.

8.5/10