- Fierce crossover techno on Ivy Lab's label.
- Lake Hills has something of a dance music Cinderella story. Once known for his design work on Ivy Lab merch, the duo took him on the road for their Infinite Falling Ground tour, where he debuted a new audiovisual live set. He's not exactly new, though—he's been DJing since 2009 and making music since 2012 before launching the Lake Hills project six years later. PRIVATE LINK, on Ivy Lab's 20/20 LDN label, could be his breakthrough release.
If you dig into the Lake Hills catalogue, you'll find that he plays with space and texture intentionally, the same way a painter uses a canvas. Last month, he released Across The Room with Frythm, an EP that roamed across trance, techno and electro with a sweet, melodic touch. PRIVATE LINK is like Across The Room's angsty older sister, where his explorations of techno, UK garage and post-dubstep take a dark turn, ditching the catchy hooks for gritty, pulsating rhythms.
"PRIVATE LINK"'s drums are sparse but persistent, galloping along like a Blawan track until the vocal chops and distorted synths kick in about a minute later. Unlike the erratic rhythms 20/20 LDN is usually known for, this techno tune—the label's first—doesn't see many fluctuations in its six minutes. But its drive is so tenacious, it leaves big shoes to fill for whatever track follows it in a DJ set. "Reset" is also satisfying, with an ominous melody that could soundtrack a horror film over a dark garage beat that channels early Plastician. It's a more subtle reference than "Katella," which starts off like a tune that was kicked off Untrue's final tracklist and then maybe remixed by Overmono (check that huge bassline). Lake Hills isn't reinventing the wheel in PRIVATE LINK, but with this EP, he delivers three cuts that give listeners insight into his taste and inspirations.
Tracklist01. PRIVATE LINK
02. Katella
03. Reset