If Connect Four has the dark thrill of running down pedestrians in Grand Theft Auto, then You Are The Key is more like chasing Super Mario World: just as lively but using a much brighter spectrum of sound. Warbling, lustrous future-funk melodies vie for attention while the samples anchor the tune in relation to musical history, referencing classic soul via seminal old skool hardcore, and legendary funk via original hiphop. It's that confluence of rave and urban that keeps the underground bubbling - but you don't need to know the samples to recognise the vibe: it's like a mimosa on a summer evening - a sharp touch that perfectly balances out the sweetness. Uplifiting piano chords twist and phase, overlapping each other and draping themselves over the track's vertebrae: shuffling hats and tight snares. A broad humming sub envelopes the tune with its warmth; when it touches back down in the second drop with a switch up in the notes, it sets the tone for the end of the tune, leading out with a smile.
Thumping, percussion-heavy tracks make up the latest from Isabassi, where depth-charge-like detonations rattle against icy synths. Bandcamp New & Notable Apr 24, 2023
Recorded during a trip back to his hometown of Dhaka, Bangladesh, on “Chokkor,” Enayet pits split-second synths against wild rhythms. Bandcamp New & Notable Feb 21, 2021