BLACK TONGUE Vinyl & CDs

Review: Late last year Italian artist and self-proclaimed "black belt ninja" Black Tongue debuted with a two-tracker that genuinely set our pulses racing. Here the man or woman of mystery returns with an even more expansive EP, which we can happily report is full to bursting with tasty treats. A-side workout "Three" offers a fine balance between jazz-funk-fired musicality, quietly impressive musicianship and infectious grooves that make the most of some deliciously loose-limbed drumming. The producer's love of classic house is explored on "Four", where the action revolves around snappy, Chicago house style machine drums, warehouse-ready stabs and an undulating keyboard bassline, while "Five" is a colourful take on jazz-funk/electrofunk fusion that reminded us of the combined output of Dego and Kaidi Tatham.

Review: Not to be confused with the Hull-based doom metal band of the same name, Black Tongue is a debutant artist with links to Italian distributor, label and record store Mother Tongue. We're not sure who's behind the project, though both "One" and "Two" are superb. The former sits on side A and features jaunty, jazz-funk style synth stabs and spacey electronic solos rising above a retro-futurist boogie groove. It's all very warm, loose and languid and operates in similar sonic territory to some of Dego and Kaidi Tatham's productions. "Two" sees the mysterious artist turn his, her or their attention to broken beat, layering intergalactic synthesizer lines and drum machine handclaps atop a sub-heavy bassline and taught, bruk-up beats.