Mount Kimbie – Maybes EP (Hotflush)

This has to be one of the most wonderful 12” I have heard all year; it’s a beautiful mixture of ambient, off-kilter hip-hop, drone, post-rock and dubstep. The A-side is at a hip-hop pace and the B-side is at about 140 bpm for some dubstep mixing action. Mount Kimbie are Kai and Dom from South East London and this is their debut record.

The title track ‘Maybes’ has some super low slung droning guitar sample that are morphed and shaped into some beautiful chord structures as break beats skip around and flickers of vocals pop on and off in a sublime melody, that brings a little light and hopefulness to the track. It’s all so mournful yet when the beat and vocals kick in it’s a real thing of beauty. I just want to lay back and hear this over and over.

The next track, ‘William’ is on a similar tip but with some super soulful vocal samples from Canadian folk tinged hip-hopper Soso. This track really draws you in with a laid back feel with mellow pianos, clicks, fuzz and a sluggish deep kick then out of know where comes some huge bass that just pulls you out of the haze and takes you on a more physical musical experience.

When you flip the platter the tempo ups but the vibe stays pretty similar which is no mean feat considering the jump. ‘Vertical’ comes on like a more lively version of ‘Maybes’ with a growling guitar style sample that still manages to sound a little sleepy and laid back. Subtle percussive tweaks and bleeps fill the record until some off kilter drum samples really kick things off. Breakdowns pop up out of the blue before building into entirely different and beautiful things, filled with melody and oral pleasure.

‘Taps’ finishes off the platter with bleepy bloopy underwater pings and crackles before a sideways beat takes you into some big bass and chords. I’m pretty addicted to this track; the way it flows into each section and the whole thing progresses is something else. Beautiful melodies break down into an electro percussive section before they come back again and really tug your heartstrings.

Mount Kimbie’s debut EP is something special that anyone after a dose of ambience with a glitchy hip-hop base and some of the most beautiful dreamy sonics around then this is for you. I would love to see a full album from these two.

http://www.myspace.com/mountkimbie

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The Sonic Router