- Brendon Moeller has so many guises that sometimes it's hard to keep up. He records straight-ahead dance tracks with his own name, "dub-techno-rock-jazz-afro-psychedelic" under his Beat Pharmacy guise and deep dub house as Echologist. Something tells me contractual obligations have a little something to do with all of the pseudonyms, but you can also easily hear the differences between each moniker if you're listening hard enough. And, this year, you will: Moeller is set to put out releases from each name in the early part of the year.
This one, sadly, isn't his best. There's nothing wrong with "The Score" really, but there's nothing particularly right about it either. A solid mid-tempo dub-inflected house track, flecks of melody and disruption make their way out of the groove every so often, but it's an unremarkable tune. (Try "The Big Thrill" under his own name for Connaisseur Supérieur, though, which lives up to its title.)
The action here is in the remixes, which come courtesy of label head Adultnapper and Underground Quality boss Jus-Ed. Napper flattens "The Score" out, leaving little to peek out, but in so doing transforms the track into a smooth tech house groove. Within that genre, "The Score" sounds stunning, with Moeller's effervescent melody piping up and floppy pieces of metal aurally bending over backwards to leave a mark. (They do.) Ed's rework, meanwhile, is in his typical style with a particular focus on the dubbier side of things—expected given the source material. It moves more quickly than usual Ed fare, though, pushing a creepy vocal sample into and around a three note melody. It's not his best work, but it won't disappoint the faithful either.
Tracklist A The Score
B1 The Score (Jus Ed's Hostage Mix)
B2 The Score (Adultnapper Remix)