Even now, there's a sense in which a single's ideal is that the A- and B-sides will have something to say to one another. Split singles tend to be predicated along those lines, from an old Sub Pop goodie like having Mudhoney and Jimmie Dale Gilmore cover one another in 1994 or Rush Hour's brilliant 2010 match-up of FaltyDL and Cosmin TRG. Putting out Gavin Herlihy's "Witching Hour" with Laura Jones's "Inner Place" on the flip is, in that sense, as canny as anything Crosstown Rebels has issued in the last few years, which is to say very canny indeed. Take the labels away and there's little chance you'd guess the two tracks weren't by the same artist—or, in a pinch, weren't a single track in two separate mixes.
"Witching Hour" is music for bringing a set up or down a notch, not for rushing your bollocks off. Herlihy's track is tech house that uses its spangles sparely, the springy central riff offsetting the strutting bass. "Inner Place" has a dreamier tune—the brief piano flourish could be an etude for closing credits, the warm, voice-like central riff (eee-eee-eeeeee, ooooh) fit for a sauna. Or it would be if the track didn't have a harder pulse than the A-side. Both tunes aim to nudge the room temperature, not alter it entirely.
Buy Gavin Herlihy / Laura Jones - Witching Hour / Inner Place at
  
Tracklist: Gavin Herlihy / Laura Jones - Witching Hour / Inner Place
 A Gavin Herlihy - Witching Hour
B Laura Jones - Inner Place
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