Toy Tonics welcome increasingly vital Italian, Whitesquare to the label for their next EP, a five track offering of seductive house that comes with a remix from NT89. Young Whitesquare hails from Rome and since 2011 has found favour with DJs like X Press 2, Noir and plenty more for his slick, high impact house on labels including Ministry of Sound, Skint and Noir.
‘Lost’ is a deep, clean and crisp house track that is pleasingly free from the usual tired tropes. The beats roll with a modern sheen, the vocal is full of heartache and the baseline is fluid as will be the bodies dancing to it. Amsterdam’s NT89 of Food Music and Turbo quickens the pace with his remix. He makes it swing that bit more and adds energetic percussion that bring a whole new edge to the groove.
‘Klum’ is a perfectly swung bit of garage house in the mould of a Disclosure or Julio Bashmore tune – the chord stabs are pixelated, the bass blobs are rich and the vibe overall is beautifully bombastic and buoyant. ‘Rise’ is a more low down, bobbling house tune where a robotic hook and libidinous vocal tussle with each other in pleasing ways.
Closer ‘Stand’ again exhibits clean and unfussy production style even though this one is the toughest of the lot: like a drunken brute it bangs about with raw perc and groaning voices, demanding you march in time thanks to the nimble one-finger bassline.
Across his four originals here the Italian showcases many different facets of his sound, with each one as effective and charismatic as the next… It’s another fine bit of recruitment by the excellent Toy Tonics.
