- Many hyped derivatives of the electro sound have come and gone, but Carl Finlow is still standing. He’s a hard man to pin down, releasing under aliases such as Silicon Scally, Voice Stealer and Random Factor, and his music is equally difficult to categorise, ranging from deep emotive numbers such as 'Spectra' and 'Evaluation' to the aptly titled 'Dark Matter'.
This time around, Finlow’s ‘Swoon’ EP is more deep house focused. The title track resonates with a deep, heavy bassline alongside drowsy atmospherics that almost sedate you by midpoint. It’s satisfactory stuff, with enough space for the track’s elements to get to work, although it does require a little patience to get there. That said, if you're a fan of deep electro-tinged house, it's another one for the bag.
'Islands' on the flip uses a more sprightly rhythm, getting the snares involved and pushing to the fore spacey, cosmic-disco synths. But there's also a dour undercurrent to the track which undercuts these more optimistic elements – something which could be said for all of the tracks here. An introspective cut for those ponderous midweek moments when life just doesn't make sense anymore.
'Blue' is definitely the most buoyant of the tracks here, and for me it’s the standout. Again there’s that heavy feel – a Finlow trademark – but the cut features beautiful, warm arpeggios layered over the huggy low-end; it’s a versatile piece of hi-tech funk that would be a welcome add to any deep set.
Green Light Recordings get off to a good start with this EP. Finlow is a versatile producer who is just as at home making floor-friendly house as writing experimental stuff as Silicon Scally. These three cuts are deep and gritty reality checks, antithetical to the usual glamour of the genre.
TracklistA Swoon
AA1 Islands
AA2 Blue