Anyone looking for a happy, hand-waving dance anthem from young Glaswegian producer Alex Smoke should stop reading now - this is far more satisfying. Hushed house beats are joined by a rising, foghorn-like hook before eerie, underwater chords complete a muted, slightly menacing atmosphere. Gloomy vocals then cast their ghostly shadow over the murky backdrop but the end result has an unmistakable dark charm and dancefloor magnetism. It proves to be a simple yet highly addictive track reminiscent of Underworld, though calmer, subtler, more downcast and far less shouty - the lyrics barely mumbling their way to the surface.
Its counterpart, Telemetry, follows a similarly simplistic yet less understated format as arpeggiated synths ascend to an acid-edged growl. With its warm, mellow chords and electro-inspired funk it owes much to the machine-made soul first pioneered by Detroit techno's forefathers, Derrick May, Juan Atkins et al, back in the late eighties. But unlike the overt eighties plagiarism that has seemingly taken over much of dance music it manages to maintain a refreshingly contemporary edge.
This release is probably too downbeat and uncommercial to set the charts alight but is distinctive and creative enough to become a cult club hit.
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