- Ewan Smith posted a snippet of "Pinger" on Facebook, saying, "Now time for something a little less emo." The track isn't a huge departure from some of his earlier work as Youandewan, but it's certainly a stark change from his recent full-length for Aus, the downtempo, melancholy There Is No Right Time. For his latest 12-inch, Smith demonstrates a dexterous touch with stripped-back, functional club music.
"Pinger" is all feel-good energy, thanks to a softly filtered double bass and loops of a murmuring crowd. Weighty kicks pounce in a beat late and are promptly joined by dubby stabs, completing an elegant palette of textures and frequencies. "Bad Orb" is an alluring, no-frills track full of '90s garage sass. Swung hi-hats jump off the kick, while sleazy, slow-releasing chords shuffle. The similar old-school bass and drum programming of "Sofa Surfa" could make it an edit of "Bad Orb," but it's a lot more entrancing. Sleepy, detuned pads rise past swooning vocals with a quiet euphoria, making it a boldly emotional contrast to its counterparts.
TracklistA1 Pinger
B1 Bad Orb
B2 Sofa Surfa