- The revamped R&S label is still slowly picking its way through the its back catalogue with a string of re-releases of classic albums and artists, but this big hitting 12-inch proves that the Belgium imprint still has its finger on the pulse.
The A-side serves up a slab of more contemplative house inflected beats, but it's "Incognito" here that shines. This B-side is nothing short of an unchained techno animal tearing everything in its path to shreds. The bass is a monolithic one note bounce kept large in the mix, just right for massive sound systems or warehouse raves. Matt Edwards then rides the lightning for the full twelve minutes, keeping the track on the edge of unreleased tension. With well-placed—but never overused—stabs of dramatic samples and a druggy production style of euphoric peaks and psychedelic melts, Edwards ensures that there is an unrelenting and claustrophobic sense that something more is forever about to happen. Engaging and brimming with high tension, "Incognito"'s breathless endurance feels like a set on its own. Easily one of the tracks of the year.
"Eyes Wide Open" is slightly less chemical, launching with several minutes of an incessant and mechanical kick drum whose merciless cold only thaws once the bass kicks in. Echoing vocals, old school piano licks and ambient drifts all come and go over the duration, but it's the lolloping bass that does all the work and gives the track its sense of propulsion. An intense single, with a more contemplative side and another bursting with fury.
TracklistA Eyes Wide Open
B Incognito