Maayan Nidam At Juno Download

Review: There is undoubtedly, a current crop of female producers that are shaking the foundations of house and techno. But when one of the most exciting and freshest sounding of these producers teams up with one of the most diverse labels of the scene, the results are likely to be more extraordinary than they were expected. Maayan Nidam has been pushing the boundaries of minimal house and techno under her Miss Fitz moniker for over three years now, but now arrives on New York label Wolf + Lamb?s tenth release as part of her more recent excursions under her own name. A slight detour from the imprint?s recent run of deep house records, Nidam delivers a genre-hopping EP of her intriguing ideas.

Lead track "sitin" is the only dancefloor orientated cut on the release. It has a cheeky and playful sound, boasting a spaced out mid-tempo house groove driven by a deliriously funky and wonkily hypnotic bassline. Emphatic vocal stabs of ?feel it? help the track to build before allowing the groove to lure the listener away into its climatic funk. "Merry Go Round" is a seductively slow paced jaunt into hip-hop and R&B. Built around an erotically charged Barry White sample, the track draws an abundance of passion out of a laidback and easily flowing groove. Taking things further afield, "Na Und" is a downtempo investigation of reversed samples and slow, slinky jazz percussion. Atonal and ambiguous sounds unravel from its wonky spine, taking the listener to an unexpected yet pleasant place. Finishing her four track exploration, "Better Stop" builds on Nidam?s bubbling sense of funk with a sublime 100bpm groove and some loop heavy samples.

The "Greatest Tits" EP represents the kind of diversity that only labels like Wolf + Lamb are capable of delivering in such a listenable way. With this opportunity, Maayan Nidam was able to use the four track format to explore her various styles whilst taking us on a mystical and sensory journey.

Review: Just when you thought that Cadenza was all about Latin-infused tool house, Maayan Nidam's New Moon comes along to blow all such perceptions out of the water. There is a depth and resonance at play on this album sadly lacking in the vast majority of modern house. From the warm bass, atmospheric chords and lazy vocal intoning 'living in harmony' on "Harmonious Funk" to the ominous acid-led shuffle of "The Great Suspenders" and the tripped out bassy excursion that is "Undermine", Nidam pushes the form to its outer limits. When the alternative is a factory line of identikit functional releases, that kind of creativity can only be a good thing.