FULLBARR

Fullbarr Digital’s inaugural release of 2010 comes in the shape of an alliance between Back To The Future’s Dudley Strangeways and sOMbOM’s Retrac. Having gathered momentum in 2009 through harnessing the talents of Danton Eeprom and Mark Broom, the label return for with four devilishly enticing dance floor tracks from the explosive Anglo-Welsh pairing.

Retrac & Dudley Strangeways pour the depths of their hedonistic urges into Dum Drumb, a chaotic, street brawl of a track. Tumbling kicks are met with slapping snares and mashed up vocals that will lock the floor into a rhythmic frenzy. Wood blocks, congas and exploded toms crash together, only abating for the skanking breakdown that heightens the percussive onslaught. The A1 is stone wall dance floor madness, yet only scratches the surface of the ideas collected into this package.

The Midnite Radio Remix of Dum Drumb has a majestic chug that conjures an almost Middle Eastern aura. Melding sirens, highly-reverbed, gently-plucked-strings with bulbous percussion, the track has a reptilian like wind and strut to it. Highly textured yet spacious and kinetic this track has enough tricks up its’ sleeve to set a charged atmosphere yet keep the energy on the floor.

A deep and bouncy number, Hold Back’s serious chords are played off against jumpy drum programming for an energetic work out. Whispered vocals, questioning synths and deep lying washes of melody hint at Retrac’s Acid Casuals’ exploits but this is all about house music’s compulsive funk. The most direct cut on the EP, this is one for lighter moments when the energy is set high.

Dudley Strangeways & The Fizz top off the package The Stripper, an extended, tripped out voyage into the dark confines of unrequited love. The scene is set by perfectly deployed vocals creeping within the drums to creating a seductive rhythmic pattern. All is revealed at the breakdown when a familiar female refrain from a scorned conquest is drizzled over