James Blake – The Bells Sketch [Hessle Audio] / CMYK [R&S] / Klavierwerke [R&S]

Where to start with James Blake? He’s a unique talent making seriously twisted synthesized gems that can range from full on dance floor movers to bittersweet introspective soul. One of my blog projects Sonic Router was probably one of the first to interview and get an article on him via Oli’s column at The Quietus right after before he dropped the ESSENTIAL ‘Stop What You’re Doing’ remix and after the sublime first 12” on Untold’s Hemlock label. A release that is still in my bag and a firm favourite sounding as fresh as it did when Distance first dropped the dub on his Rinse show that got everyone’s attention. Ever since he’s been making waves, getting attention outside of the scene and dropping some seriously good 12”s/EPs. A low-key collaboration with Airehead on BRAiNMATH, one for the always on point Hessle Audio, whose quality control is just insanely high and another for legendary old school techno label R&S who seem to be making a return to my radar for the first time in years after dropping a brilliant few records from Pariah and now the guy in question.

For some reason I’ve not got around to writing much on him here so a rundown of his last three EPs is in order because I can’t stop playing them. He shows some range over the three from the stripped back percussive elements on The Bells Sketch EP to the shape shifting R&B sampling gems on CMYK or the mellow eerie bedroom soul on the latest addition Klavierwerke.

The Hessle release has a percy on it in the form of ‘Buzzard & Kestrel’ the rhythms are irresistible, they subtly roll out with a heavy groove before the synths are unleashed in a sudden flourish. It’s the paired back minimal clicks and booms of the percussion that do it for me here. The title track and ‘Give A Man A Rod’ are something else too, both melodramatic synthesizer jams that make people move in strange ways when they’re dropped in the dance. The collision of laid back funk and twisted synths on ‘The Bells Sketch’ is a killer combination, it’s a huge sounding track with so much pent up energy its unreal. ‘Give A Man A Rod’ is a subtler affair, a spaced out funk number that seems like its been beamed in from an intergalactic cocktail bar.

The two R&S EPs come from different angels CMKY plays around with that popular production trick of taking slinky R&B vocals and twisting them into new shapes. But instead of re-treding that post-Burial emotional landscape Blake morphs the likes of Aaliyah and Kelis into freaky funk jams like the anthemic title track with its looping mantra of ‘Look I found her, red coat, look I found her’ over bleepy melodies reminiscent of Peverelist’s ‘Roll With The Punches’ a track which he’s also made a cheeky remix of, but its the twisting euphoric synth rushes that lead into the big bass drops that really shake things up. The rest of the EP is a more low key affair reaching for subtler highs and drops that are designed to tug at your heartstrings rather than make you loose your shit.

It’s the latest EP entitled Klavierwerke that takes that mellow side and really runs with it though. James has hinted at his paired down vocal side for sometime with covers of Feist’s ‘Limit To Your Love’ with him accompanied by piano. Here he doesn’t go into full on vocal mode but hints at it by using his voice as another instrument, chopping bits in and out here and there. It’s all pretty chilled out, haunted and melancholy, really introspective. The title track has a late night deep house feel running through it that’s channelled through a hazy bedroom soul. At many points in the EP like on ‘Tell Her Safe’ when the hazy piano and vocal loop intro takes hold you think he could break out into full song at any point, but it’s the restrained mellow vibe that wins over and it’s a killer EP for it. The fragments of song get twisted into these new shapes and contexts that’s way more interesting than straight up song craft, but then that’s a talent he no doubt has somewhere too.

Who knows what else he’s got up his sleeve, go and see him DJ and you’ll see yet another side to him. As well as fresh dubs from the guy taking in all those vibes mentioned above you get some seriously adventurous combinations in the mix. It’ll make you wonder why Coki doesn’t produce for Beyonce for one… Plus if you’ve never experienced his remix of Untold in the flesh on a crowded dance floor you’re missing out big time. Now my catch up session is over you go and do the same.

http://www.myspace.com/jamesblakeproduction

Pariah – Safehouses EP [R&S]

Pariah drops a double pack on the recently refreshed and vibrant R&S records, six tracks of pure Pariah. He shows us some breadth and flexes his production muscles in all directions, from tribal dance floor workouts to deep house textures and tweaked out hip-hop variants all with a slight garage strain rolling through it.

Percussive roller ‘The Slump’ drops hard, from tribal accented beats into an almighty bass pulse that would make Untold and Ramadanman proud. Eski-like beats stomp under the building layers of percussion and bass weight until a release comes in the form of melodic soulful vocal samples and twilight pads. Like a garage cousin of Rishi Romero’s 'African Forest' in a head on collision with Pulse-X and a healthy does of melancholic melody. It’s a big one. With its deep and housy vibes ‘Prism’ is a welcome addition to the front end of this EP, where the dance floor takes front stage. It’s a subtle number mind, keeping it close with a tight and bumpy percussive roll. Synth’s refract and spin off in different directions over building wide screen pads before a pulsing bass line gets things moving.

The late night vibes of ‘Railroad’ get things nice and blissful, Pariah flexes his off-kilter atmospheric hip-hop muscles. He merges that vibe with a slinky garage bump with ease, its like you’re stuck on a bus mid summer, heavy with sweat. Sweeping melodies with an emotional pull get pushed into shape by deep bass flourishes and junglist breaks before it all melts into field recordings and the next track ‘Crossed Out’ which takes off where ‘Prisim’ left but with a rattling garage bump more prominent… you could fit it next to recent efforts from George Fitzgerald or Hyetal with ease.

The final two see Pariah in atmospheric mode, first up is ‘C - Beams’ where he brings out his inner Dilla, which he plays out under field recordings, bittersweet soundtrack pianos and computer game lilted funk. Things go deeper still with atmospheric drones on the closing track ‘Safehouses’, its almost reminiscent of GAS in some ways, its layers of sound wrapping itself around your ears before it engulfs you in a bed of looping tones. A solid EP that has range and scope, taking in different moods and atmospheres, the dance floor tracks will be in people’s bags for a while yet and the rest will mesmerise on those late nights.

http://www.myspace.com/pariahbeats
http://www.rsrecords.com/

Sonic Router Mix

Originally written for Sonic Router.

Pariah – Detroit Falls/Orpheus [R&S]

This 10” has been in the works for a while and sees Pariah drop his first non-remix/original artist works. After his spaced-out garage re-work of indie darlings The xx we get two slices of some of the finest funk and soul driven hip-hop leaning garage hybrids around and his debut release for the legendary R&S records.

‘Detroit Falls’ twists Motown’s soul into a bumping garage ghost, vocals get morphed into chopped up hooks and looped piano samples give the whole track a very hip-hop feel. Subtly bubbling synth melodies top it all off and the whole thing comes together with a bit of funky swagger. The real highlight is the rolling medative soul on show with ‘Orpheus’, it sits somewhere between the spectral garage of Burial and the bumping dance floor styles of Fantastic Mr Fox and the soul of FaltyDL: its deep and introspective but with some serious flex and garage rhythms, not to mention some seriously hypnotic bass tones.

We’re set to hear more from Pariah, with a double 12” to come on R&S to name but one. His soul drenched melodic take on garage really creeps up on you. Pure vibes.

http://www.myspace.com/pariahbeats
http://www.rsrecords.com/

Originally writen for Sonic Router.