Italian producer Alessandro Russo aka SLOK has been on an ever-evolving rise to fame over the past eight or so years, racking up releases on some of underground electronic music’s well-respected labels, namely, Get Physical Music, Moodmusic, My Favorite Robot, and Turbo Recordings. As well as running his, Electronic Petz imprint, a label, which delivers fresh contemporary house cuts, and has introduced many newcomers onto the scene.

The original mix of title cut, ‘Durian’, kicks things off here, a dark and brooding number, employing punchy, raw drums, cavernous background atmospherics, crunchy saw-wave bass and bubbling vocal lines, to create a tripped out gritty house number. The Ultrasone duo, notably known for their work on Visionquest and Supplement Facts, rework ‘Durian’ into a low-slung ethereal workout next, stripping back the vibe with sparse, soft, and jazzy drums, while a hooky organ and whispering pads add a soulful, deep texture to the record, as expected the reshape is emotive and melodically stunning.

Up next is the second original cut from SLOK, entitled ‘Keep Moving’, a great follow up from the Ultrasone mix as Russo delves into a minimalistic vibe himself this time. Simple 4/4 beats lay in the background, while rolling sub bass tones, elongated echoes and sporadic synth sweeps run alongside murmuring low-pitched vocals, again resulting in a moody dance-floor ready house record. Culprit’s, Droog, stick their original contemporary stamp on ‘Keep Moving’ to follow, the trio take snippets from the original track, but add their unique characteristics to things, with intricate, ever-evolving synth lines brilliantly warbling in pitch, and a dropped tempo vibe, allowing the melodies to really bloom. Finally to close the single is ‘You Got It’, which sees SLOK
offer up a stunningly contrasting record, as he fuses organic percussion, fluttering disco synths and penetrating bass stabs to create a perfect closer for the EP.

Artist:  SLOK
Title:  Durain EP
Label:  Turquoise Blue Recordings
Catalog No.:  TQR011
Release Date:  Vinyl out now/Digital soon


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