- A quick Google search of any of Jamal Moss's multiple aliases throws up a range of evocative adjectives ranging from "idiosyncratic" to "autistic." His well-known preoccupation with Chicago house has always been dogmatic in nature, but he's also thankfully foregone pure classicist revivalism for an experimental bent. Even so, since his last split release with Dirty Criminals compatriot Daryl "DeeCoy" Cura in 2004 for Cura's Eargasmic Recordings, The Sun God seems to have evolved into the least cuddly of all Moss's monikers, whereby more frequently recurring descriptive words—raw, sharp, dirty—are amplified to within a hair's breadth of unlistenability.
"Easing Into Tomorrow" is presented like a nightmare: Tinny presets; a siren-like melody with a secret, complicated tempo it never really cares to reveal; string sounds pitched up into shrillness. Four teeth-on-edge minutes in, however, it's grounded by pattering percussion, followed by a low-end synth melody that introduces a deep, low funk, before the same melody dramatically moves up a couple of octaves, before plunging back down again; after the tension of the opening strains the juxtaposition makes for an exhilarating last half. "The 3rd Wave" is the EP's weak link, a barebones rhythm track in a state of undress, reminiscent of Moss's loops with Steve Poindexter, but after a noncommittal opening of static-soaked beats and electronic pulses, "Did We Come" establishes its spikiness via a sharp sideways turn into warped chiming and a swollen kick drum.
After Moss's trio, Cura's "Waiting Room" is like an aural palate cleanser, a fresh breeze that reins in the analog fury for even-tempered deepness and spacious clarity. With vaguely humanistic pulses, and its dubbed out singular melody and reverbed handclaps, it's as curious and alien-esque as its creepy video. As with Moss, there's no easy rewards here for needle-drop skimming, but particularly for the EP's opener, it's a check in the "pro" column for musical single-mindedness.
TracklistA1 Easing Into Tomorrow
A2 The 3rd Wave - The Emerging Edit
B1 Did We Come Here 2 Laugh Or Cry
B2 Waiting Room