Marcus "Intalex" Kaye follows his debut as Trevino with Slide Away, his latest set for Hotflush Recordings. The quartet's framework boasts the producer's versatility, and speaks to Kaye's ability to recognize the soulful, emotive capacity of tracks designated for a club's main room.
Slide Away combines dance floor rudiments with synthesizers that Kaye has effectively proportioned to deliver both delirium and dream-state for the listener. Warm, euphoric synths coyly saunter around the commanding aggression of the 4/4 kicks, while an acidic bass hook steers the listener through the title track. The blistering pace of Kaye's crisply programmed percussion on "Mosaic" and "Desecrate" is reminiscent of the producer's drum and bass roots. He maintains the dissociative depth of the EP as he closes with "Jungle Love," on which he boldly juxtaposes a progressive, churning pulse with minor chords to make it the highlight of the four.
While the EP is too quirky to classify as a series of tools, the pounding 4/4 kicks throughout the record allow it to retain the functionality of a record bag mainstay. Without compromising its visceral feel, Kaye drafts an EP that is equally equipped for massive club systems as it is for remote headphone listening. (Hotflush Recordings, hotflushrecordings.com)
Corinne Przybyslawski
(Hotflush)Slide Away combines dance floor rudiments with synthesizers that Kaye has effectively proportioned to deliver both delirium and dream-state for the listener. Warm, euphoric synths coyly saunter around the commanding aggression of the 4/4 kicks, while an acidic bass hook steers the listener through the title track. The blistering pace of Kaye's crisply programmed percussion on "Mosaic" and "Desecrate" is reminiscent of the producer's drum and bass roots. He maintains the dissociative depth of the EP as he closes with "Jungle Love," on which he boldly juxtaposes a progressive, churning pulse with minor chords to make it the highlight of the four.
While the EP is too quirky to classify as a series of tools, the pounding 4/4 kicks throughout the record allow it to retain the functionality of a record bag mainstay. Without compromising its visceral feel, Kaye drafts an EP that is equally equipped for massive club systems as it is for remote headphone listening. (Hotflush Recordings, hotflushrecordings.com)
Corinne Przybyslawski