Kelly Price W8 Gain Vol. 2

‘Kelly Price W8 Gain Vol. II EP’ is the four track Hyperdub debut from Hype Williams, a group with two core members who have spawned a steadily growing labyrinth of hermetic, audio/visual surrealism over the last year, and have attracted the attention of many inquisitive and occasionally confused eyes and ears. Hype Williams’ hazy aesthetic gives these tracks an opiated glow from the get go. ‘Rise Up’ buries Inga Copeland’s soft untrained vocal in slow kicks and the most warm, ecstatic chords this side of early New Jersey Garage. The rough dub feel and hand punched drums of ‘Boss Man’ are matched with cloud-like Detroit chords and smudged melodies that sound like they’re borrowed off a lost Wiley Sino-Grime classic. ‘Farthing Wood Dub’ rubs together smooth chords reminiscent of 808 State’s ‘Pacific State’ with an Augustus Pablo-styled melodica, while ccasional jump cut edits and awkward melodies stop the track from feeling too settled. The last track ‘Bad Mind’ plays out the awkward juxtaposition of graceful rounds of Japanese-sounding synths that gently chime behind the entrancing gloom of a poetry recital over a winding bassline. Hype Williams' odd sounding musical narcotics seem perfectly at home on Hyperdub.