Ill Blu – Meltdown review

Having impressed us with their breakthrough track, the 2008 vocal hit “Do You Mind” and “Bellion/Dragon Pop” on Kode 9’s Hyperdub last year via a super cool remix of Hot Chip, pre-eminent London based UK funky duo Ill Blu step up with this release on Glaswegian label Numbers. The pair have well earned their place alongside the likes of Cooly G, Scratcha DVA, Lil Silva, Roska et al, blending hip-shaking rhythms with cool, chopped up vocals and silky smooth SFX, and here they build on their success with a three track EP taking in all these flavours along the way.

Kicking off with the much talked about eponymous track of the EP, “Meltdown” acts as the perfect entrée; the taught pitter patter of drums introduces the piece, with a reverberating vocal sample and a similar synth bassline sound to Redlight’s tune “Stupid”. It makes for a compelling listen, with plenty of dancefloor driven panache and synth flourishes colouring it along the way. “Overdose”, up next, is more comparable to the aforementioned “Bellion” than any of the rest, building from a sparse intro with echoing cooing and tripping, crispy beats, into a more bleepy, high pitched main tune, masterfully counteracted by throbbing low end b-line action and jungle style chirrups. “Chelt” brings the EP to a close, with a more tech-ed up approach, accelerating into the drop with a clamour of jingling SFX, rumbling atmospherics.

Belinda Rowse