DJRUM

SEVEN LIES (2nd Drop)

17/20

Felix Manuel aka DjRUM is a UK producer with the right idea; that idea being the comprehensive welding together of atmospheric sounds that can also ignite a dancefloor with ease. The aforementioned first part is achieved with a sonic depth that harks back to Triangulation-era Scuba, while the second is wonderfully addressed through harnessing techno and two-step in an addictive bassy hybrid that hypnotises and pulses these tunes out of the realm of ambient and into heady danceable jams. The triple header of DAM, Arcana (Do I Need You) and Lies, the latter of which features the oddly-typed Shad[]wb[]x, and are slices of depthy, weighty two-step whose ethereal quality are never diminished or pushed to the back of the production despite the beat hypnosis. Flashes of classical instrumentation add even more to the production value, which reaches a zenith in the haunting and moving Anchors. 2013 is unlikely to grace us with a more richly rewarding electronic effort.

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Words: Thomas Frost