Moiré - Gel EP

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  • Ending his review of Moiré's first full-length, Shelter, Andrew Ryce pointed out, "Moiré's debut album does a better job of showcasing his potential than realizing it." Whether or not you agreed, the Londoner's Gel EP validates the notion that his best was yet to come. Where previous 12-inches for Werkdiscs and Rush Hour grappled with reconciling avant inclinations with classic club ideas, this outing for R&S streamlines both modes into four oily, robust packages of no-nonsense dance music. "Let Down" sets the tone with gnarled, low-tempo house, swaggering forth like a mechanized Gary Glitter beat. Its synth palette sounds as if made of laser beams and neon diodes, and the bassline that joins intermittently adds off-kilter funk to an otherwise lumbering stomp. Moiré leans into stranger rhythms on "Blind" and "Gel," but they're bonafide jams all the same. With its wonky beat and disjointed melodic layers, the latter feels a bit off-handed for a title track, but the blunted, unkempt session is sure to lock in curious heads. "Blind," however, zeroes in on the dance floor, attempting little more than to ride a blown-out groove through five-plus minutes of twitchy synths and skittish bass notes. It all works very well, but Gel's crowning achievement is "STFN," where we finally hear Moiré drop the heady stuff and give us something huge. This one is all testosterone and slap—between the throbbing sub, flashy FX, cocky shouts and seductive drum-machine bounce, "STFN" makes aggro house music verge on sexual. Something in the way Moiré strikes that canny balance sounds like a revelation for a dyed-in-the-wool outsider.
  • Tracklist
      A1 Let Down A2 STFN B1 Gel B2 Blind
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