- Despite a name which alludes to wishful thinking, Hit & Hope have had a consistent knack for landing on rich and diverse territory in their initial forays as a record label, whether it be the emotive synthetic bleeps of Pixelord or more direct dubby dance floor workouts via KLIC and Elkat & Moleskin. It should be no surprise, then, that their seventh release, Cetra by Sinistarr, heralds the latest drum & bass producer to flex their production skills in less familiar tempos.
The title track sinks smoothly from a stripped down stuttering 135 BPM rhythm into a warm coating of melodies and bass. (It's the sumptuous strings that saunter in just before the minute mark that stay with you, though.) "Bear the Mark" takes things to a more typical drum & bass range. Warm '90s machined Detroit sounds echo through the rolling bass, complemented with subtle juke and ghetto funk twists. The first two tracks and Taylor Hawkins remix of "Cetra" weave through the shared path of Detroit techno and drum & bass seamlessly. "Runna" is another matter. The gentle stab and looped vocal intro gets kicked into the air by a 90 BPM head nod beat before being smashed with a ferocious robotic zap of rabid funk, leaving you in a happy daze.
Tracklist A1 Runna
A2 Bear the Mark
B Cetra
Digital: Cetra (Taylor Hawkins Remix)