UK label Nervous Horizon delivers its first compilation series, a club-ready collection of tracks that show influences from many dance styles, all with particular attention to heavy bass and intricate structure between rhythm and melody. A track like TSVI’s synth-laden house jam “Aquaflush” sits right next to Lokane’s Salt-N-Pepa & Future sampling club track “See Me”, then we are thrust into Butti’s “The Quid” which shows a tremendous Hyperdub influence. And while all feel different individually, they clearly map out the landscape of (especially UK) club music, the many Venn diagrams of different sounds all overlapping each other. The sound design from all these producers feels dystopian- machines that have slightly rusted and silverware not completely polished working together to create melody and order out of an urban chaos. It acknowledges the fact that music has been being made on machines for quite some time so producers can perfect the sheen on the sound, but in the grand scheme of time, we are still in the gritty dark ages of electronic music production. It should feel both ancient and futuristic.
• Nervous Horizon: https://soundcloud.com/nervoushorizon
More about: Nervous Horizon, Nervous Horizon (Various Artists)
