- After its timely re-release of Nimbus Quartet in December, Lazare Hoche Records returns to the here and now with the Width EP from Mandar. Made up of Parisian label owner Lazare Hoche and his Danish and Dutch production pals Samuel Andre Madsen and Malin Genie, the project debuted late last year with two tracks on I Don't Sync So Volume II. Back for a bigger bite of the cherry, Mandar start the label's 2014 campaign with their debut release.
Those that caught the dreamy house soundscapes of "Fouad" and "St Eustache" will be thrown by cagey opener "Naughty Mandar." A dim, beatless intro slowly unfurls to form a sombre and gently throbbing body of portly kicks, gossamer-thin pads and lovestruck male whispers. The sounds are so mellow that it may take you a fair few listens to realise its full, beautifully haunting potential. "Width," with its strapping bassline and swinging kicks, finds the trio back on more familiar territory, the track's punchy frame complemented by an effervescent lead synth. "808 Ruffneck Business," however, sees Mandar try their hand at a new approach, coming through with a percussive, no-nonsense slice of funk-ridden house. If, like me, you thought you had this lot sussed as another pack of '90s house purists, this EP should completely change your mind.
TracklistA Naughty Mandar
B1 Width
B2 808 Ruffneck Business