- Gerry Read still very much seems to be laying the foundations of his sound: The 19 year old has crafted crisp dubstep, knackered house and warm dub in the past, but his latest for 2nd Drop opts for a decidedly stripped-back and earthy garage template. At times there is as much space as there is sound; space which crackles with tape hiss and static, while the warm timber framework around it marks out myriad little rhythmic nooks and crannies. It's tight and involved, all pent up as if set to explode. But it doesn't. Instead there's an eventual slow release of energy thanks to the firefly-like chords that dart about from the midpoint, adding subtle but necessary colour to what is otherwise a sepia canvas.
On the flip, fellow young-gun Youandewan's version is only a distant relation: his finger-knocking-on-a-door beats and percussion are soft-edged yet purposeful, and come coated in a thick underwater murkiness. The whole thing shuffles aplenty, forever juggling myriad grooves as some expansive synths bleed out along a wider longitudinal plane. It sounds like Triangulation-era Scuba in a hurry, and quite possibly usurps the original as this release's real gem.
Tracklist A Roomland
B Roomland (Youandewan Remix)