Jackmate

Jackmate’s debut album is an excellent mix of house and techno. Like those genres’ original incarnations, there are high and low frequencies, and not much in between. The album begins with "Prodigal Son,” a great techno number with a spoken word sample, high-hats, and long, drawn out synth chords hung over the whole track. Tracks like "Manray” and "Mink” follow a similar pattern. On the house side of things are "Chicago Toronto,” which incorporates classic organ stabs and modern clicks and glitches. "Wolfen” is similar, but in a minimal style. The album weakens a bit near the end — "8osc 7seq,” which is equal parts LFO and Future Sound of London, should stick with break beats all the way through, instead of going techno at the midway point, and "Freezer Burn” could have been left off altogether for lack of ideas. These are small concerns though. Overall, the quality of the tracks is extremely high. There’s a good mix of old and new sounds and they are organised into an enjoyable album.