- What would happen if broken techno met Banjo Kazooie?
- The logo for Will Hofbauer’s Third Place label reminds me of those alphabet blocks you find at a nursery—a place where you’re also likely to be struck by soft play material and lots of primary colours. These are two things his friend and producer Jim Bremner (AKA Sangre Voss) admitted would make for his dream DJ setup. Bremner and Hofbauer were meant for each other. Their shared love for cartoonish themes seeps into their solo work, where lanky drum patterns and dub effects make the music pop and fizz.
This sense of play comes to a head on the second single for their new label whirm, "I Feel U," which sounds like what might happen if Bristolian techno was inspired by country square dances and video games about bears named Banjo. A jaunty synth lead skips up and tumbles down as a criss-cross pattern of plodding kick drums, light shakers and taps create the semblance of a dembow rhythm. The soundstage is about as open as your arms are during a do-si-do, Voss and Hofbauer's trademark dubby effects coo and caw about it with the cheek of Banjo's Kazooie. Dance music doesn't get much more colourful than this.