When FunkinEven first emerged on Eglo, his dalliances with funk, R&B and electro seemed a natural fit for a label whose output pays scant regard to pigeonholes. Though he's not turned his back on that creative width—his work with Fatima, for example, has shown proficiency for wonky soul—his biggest successes have come with music targeted straight at the rump. Whether solo on his own Apron label, or in collaboration with Kyle Hall as FunkinEvil, dance floor bombs like "Dracula" or the recent "Ignorant" show that a simplification of his style can make a massive impact.
Even by FunkinEven's standards, though, Species is spartan. Take "Beat Tunnel," which over its four minutes assaults a kick drum with flanged snare rolls, or "Aviator," which follows a similar 303-and-808 formula as "Dracula," building a strutting facsimile of late '80s electro with nothing more than an acid riff. "The Joker," too, with its bassline scratching at military snare rolls, is a triumph of restraint, until everything slows to a crawl and slowly accelerates back to fifth gear with maniacal laughter.
These track's functionality makes the two cuts that bookend Species a surprise. The opener leads with a solo cello that's subsumed by chords sticky with static, a beatless intro that does little to indicate the raw jams that follow. "Mars" is like Theo Parrish on meth, an anxious swirl of organ stabs and snapping snares at 140 BPM. It's impressive that something so manic sits alongside the most laconic cut here and still feels cohesive.
Even by FunkinEven's standards, though, Species is spartan. Take "Beat Tunnel," which over its four minutes assaults a kick drum with flanged snare rolls, or "Aviator," which follows a similar 303-and-808 formula as "Dracula," building a strutting facsimile of late '80s electro with nothing more than an acid riff. "The Joker," too, with its bassline scratching at military snare rolls, is a triumph of restraint, until everything slows to a crawl and slowly accelerates back to fifth gear with maniacal laughter.
These track's functionality makes the two cuts that bookend Species a surprise. The opener leads with a solo cello that's subsumed by chords sticky with static, a beatless intro that does little to indicate the raw jams that follow. "Mars" is like Theo Parrish on meth, an anxious swirl of organ stabs and snapping snares at 140 BPM. It's impressive that something so manic sits alongside the most laconic cut here and still feels cohesive.
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Published /
Tue / 3 Sep 2013 -
Words /
Tom Banham -
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Tracklist /
A1 Species
A2 The Joker
B1 Aviator
B2 Beat Tunnel
B3 Mars
Amsterdam
London
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