- Jitterbug's paltry Discogs entry—it only includes this release—is a bit deceiving: This UK-based producer's debut EP is a fully-formed statement of intent, putting them in orbit immediately with Jus-Ed's Underground Quality and the deep house sound that has been crafted slowly but surely over the past few years via his influential radio show. (J-bug proudly points out on MySpace that Ed played two tracks recently.)
Each track here falls neatly into that smeared house sound, one in which the synths sound as if they're being played in a cardboard box before they're let out into the world. Black Jazz Consortium's New Horizon EP did the same thing, reveling in distorted drum programming and minor key riffing. "Dream Memory" is the best original here, taking A-side honors and tying an Aphex circa Analogue Bubblebath-era melody to a house beat. It's psychedelic, and far more immediately engaging than its successor, "Speakers Corner," which wonders how much mileage can be had out of a cymbal and muted tones. (The answer: At least six-and-a-half minutes.)
"No Pressure" does the same as "Speakers Corner" for the most part, adding a funk guitar line to keep things fresh, while Strength Music man DJ Qu turns up for a remix and proceeds to keep things boiling mercilessly for six minutes, never letting "No Pressure" climax in any discernible way. It's a nice metaphor, in fact, for Jitterbug's debut EP when you think about it—a collection of tunes that hint and feint, never really doing much more than creating excellent mood music to build into and out of.
Tracklist A1 Dream Memory
A2 Speakers Corner
B1 No Pressure
B2 No Pressure (DJ Qu Remix)