- Presk and Felix Lenferink are two Amsterdam producers whose breezy house and garage-leaning productions have often favoured finicky detail over substance. With their Will & Ink label they seek to redress the balance, turning their talents to no-frills loop techno, though their fixation on swing and micro-groove remains intact. The label's fourth release is its first from a non-founder, the unknown Yaleesa Hall. It doesn't deviate too much from the established Will & Ink formula, but it might be the best instance of it yet.
As with other parts of the Will & Ink catalogue, the gritty breakbeat derivations and whipcrack chord work of Shed loom large over much of the EP. In opener "First Leyland," clattering breaks and tart synths scud gracefully across the beat. On "Third Leyland," the highlight, the syncopations reach deeper, infecting the kick such that the whole groove flexes and bends like a piece of elastic. The blueprint is clearly parts of the Wax or EQD series, but Hall subtly rebalances the elements so that they register less as propulsive skip than as beatdown halftime. Throw in some nifty delay-fogged breakdowns and job's a goodun. By comparison, "Second Leyland"'s emaciated dub texturing seems a little reserved, but give it time and its vacuum cleaner wiggle will work its steady way into the hips.
TracklistA1 First Leyland
B1 Second Leyland
B2 Third Leyland