From house to tech to tech-house and everything that falls under that arbitrary ‘dance’ umbrella, we’ve tirelessly scrutinised a literal ton of wax to bring you a handful of the best in singles and EPs this month.
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CLAP! CLAP!
‘Tambacounda EP’
(BLACK ACRE)
Black Acre are on a roll right now, continuing the Afrocentric explorations of Romare’s EP to give jazzman Cristiano Crisci’s Clap! Clap! project an outing. Awash with stomping carnival fervour, tribal sampling and frenzied percussion, hyperactivity is the name of the game here. The jungle is dark, but full of diamonds.
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APPLEBLIM & KOMON
‘Jupiter EP’
(AUS MUSIC)
These old Bristolian pals double up for what is their second joint release, this time gracing Will Saul’s consistently heavy Aus Music. Three solid house groovers line up for inspection – the A-side boasting a cosmic affair, while on the flip we go deeper and dubbier. The ’80s never sounded so slick.
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AVALON EMERSON
‘Pressure / Quoi!’
(ICEE HOT)
Software engineer by day, techno deity by night, Avalon Emerson brings a sharp kick to proceedings with two ruff new cuts. ‘Pressure’ spiders into a fearsome workout while ‘Quoi!’ drops a whip-crack of a vocal like a continually detonating bomb. Tuff City Kids step up for two remixes, getting out the cheese grater to produce two abrasive reworks.
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AMIT
‘The Parallel EP’
(AMAR)
Sure, dubstep’s had a few bad words whispered about it in the playground recently. So it’s a relief when someone like AMIT comes along with some dread speaker-rumbling goodness as a throwback to the glory days. Teaming up with Rani and the Tempa-signed Nomine, he also layers half-step drum ‘n’ bass over South Asian tropes. One for the stacked soundsystems.
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TIMBAH
‘Flow Poke EP’
(BAD TASTE RECORDS)
Brain-mangling bass from Sheffield’s Bad Taste camp by startlingly talented newcomer Timbah. The title cut emerges as a polyrhythmic piece of flubber while the whiplash-inducing ‘Thunder Clacks’ staggers darkly between low frequencies. Colourful grime general Murlo brings his carnival A-game, but it’s the Tony Quattro rework that smashes it out of the park. Killer.
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LOCKAH
‘If Loving U Is Wrong, I Don’t Want To Be Wrong’
(DONKY PITCH)
Tuff Wax honcho Lockah announces his debut album with another tongue twister of a single that sweeps in Miami bass and sleek, driving-in-an-open-top-down-a-highway pop. Add a few ravey house chord progressions and you’ve got yourself a good old fashioned banger. We’ll await the LP with bated breath.
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BEN PEARCE
‘Lego EP’
(PURP & SOUL)
Ben Pearce toys with the building blocks of dance music, returning to his underground roots after the inescapable ‘What I Might Do’ scaled chart heights. The title cut whirls insistently around a wailing vocal snippet while the alarmingly titled ‘GBH’ asserts its guttural persona, and ‘The Rain Is Coming’ comes to life as a tormented slow-burner.
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AKITO
‘Metamessage EP’
(SUB SKANK)
London club-night-turned-label Sub Skank release this battering ram of a four-tracker from co-founder and unsung hero Akito. ‘Metamessage’ courts grime and UK funky, reaching sub blowout potential with its skittering arrangements and visceral bassline. The equally fun ‘Aqua Tryst’ and ‘Bordello Bounce’ are all that’s needed to complete this bass party bag.
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Words: Felicity Martin
Check out Clash’s Electric Selection every month in our magazine edition – details here.
