- A mix of old-school influences.
- Anyone who's spent time in the wilds of dance music Twitter may have seen a quip or factoid from Ilana Bryne, who goes by the handle vxpowl. Bryne is also a veteran of the Midwestern rave scene. During the late '90s, she was a fixture in the drum & bass community of Minneapolis, where she DJ'd under the alias Ricochet. She now operates under her own name. With Low Earth Orbit, Bryne gets her long-awaited debut. As with Naive's past releases, Low Earth Orbit is a mix of old-school influences, blending classic breakbeat, deep house and garage into a personal mixture with broad appeal.
Bryne embodies the double-sided nature of the Midwest's long-running rave scene. House and techno from Chicago and Detroit runs through her veins, as do influences from the UK's hardcore continuum. UK music fans might recognise David Rodigan's voice floating through "Dub Box Medicine," a confident breakbeat workout with dub techno chords and a whining lead, which turns the track into an emotional banger. "Feelin' Myself" leans more towards the US, with synths and chords that take cues from Detroit house and techno.
"Mmm Mmm Mmm," which sounds like an excerpt from a live set of downtempo breakbeat she recently shared, is unhurried and blessed with a cool keyboard riff. Ciel's stellar remix makes it deeper and more propulsive, redolent of the late '90s breakbeat and tech house she DJs with. Low Earth Orbit will slot into the current crop of breakbeat-driven house records, but its blend of ideas from jungle, garage and deep house make it stand out.
TracklistA1 Dub Box Medicine
A2 Feelin' Myself
B1 Mmm Mmm Mmm
B2 Mmm Mmm Mmm (Ciel's Sigh O' The Times Rework)