- Lloyd SB is 20-year-old Sheffield producer Jack Chapman. Though he's appeared on a couple of compilations, including the inaugural 12-inch from leftfield grime label Boxed, Boida Flare is his first solo record. Released by the new-ish London label Nervous Horizon, Chapman's seven-track EP features sleek club tools for fans of instrumental grime. While it sticks close to the tradition of stark, "Pulse X"-style tracks, it also shimmers with metallic techno textures. Elements of Jersey club and vogue beats appear here and there, drawing the music closer to a transatlantic club sound associated with crews like Gang Fatale and Lit City Trax.
Chapman's sound design is on point. "Hypercube"'s thick arpeggios conjure images of anime futurism, a trail of red motorcycle lights weaving along a Tokyo highway. They ring out over jackhammer claps and "Ha" samples that sharpen up the track's already tough edge. "King Of The Castle"—the other standout—has an even stronger bite. When the track's big, juicy bass cuts through the mix, faces will instantly screw. Both tracks are bone dry and turn negative space into a dance floor weapon. With its cybernetic shine and four-on-the-floor beat, "Pirate Bay" is a big-room tune that could work as an eccentric aside in a techno set. That one is remixed by Nervous Horizon co-founder TSVI, whose version nods towards South African house with a flurry of syncopated hand drums. "The Portal," Chapman's collaboration with Wallwork (also a label co-founder), is a frenzied take on half-step drum & bass that approaches main-stage trap in terms of grandiosity. It's a big tune, though a bit out of place on Boida Flare.
TracklistA1 Boida Flare
A2 Hypercube
A3 King of the Castle
B1 Peach's Palace
B2 Pirate Bay
B3 The Portal feat. Wallwork
B4 Pirate Bay (TSVI Remix)