xxxy At Juno Download

Review: Summer's coming and Manchester producer xxxy has decided to have it. Big time. An excellent and vital producer, who's been impressing hugely over the last year with mixes on Fortified Audio and Ten Thousand Yen, xxxy steps away from his more woozy bass mode on "Everything", which simply leaps out on first listen thanks to a Chicago-esque vocal chopped up anthemically yet tastefully over some hands-in-the-air Juno stabs and jacking drums. Trust us, this is going to be huge. Up next, "I Know This (Can't Be Love) is pretty essential too, thanks to an unlikely mix of acid basslines and pitched-up vocals. Hugely recommended all round.

Review: The near unstoppable run of xxxy continues with Kerpow on Irish label All City (responsible for that massive FaltyDL release this summer), complete with fantastically adorned, pop-art referencing sleeve. It's clear that his style has matured over his prolific run of productions; "Kerpow" is arguably one xxxy's most balanced productions to date, eschewing the day-glo garage of his recent tracks, and combining a pounding breakbeat and techno stabs with warm organ chords in just the right quantities. "Down Wit U" is a juke influenced cut, combining a relentless bass slam and restless 808 rhythms while the titular vocal sample adds a hook worthy of footwork contemporary Addison Groove.

Review: With releases on Doc Daneeka's Ten Thousand Yen label as well as Well Rounded, Manchester's Xxxy is going from strength to strength with every release. This latest on Pollen features some excellent chilled, phased stabs that slowly get conjoined with slow-attack strings and punchy sub-bass. British dubstep wizard Jack Sparrow keeps the vibe similar on his mix, but adds more grimey kicks and bass hits to help drive it along a little stronger. Perfect for the head as well as the floor.

Review: Ten Thousand Yen do it right again with the future flex of rising producer XXXY. "You Always Started" will bear obvious comparisons to early Joy Orbsion - before he went all house - but that's no bad thing as it's drenched in a soulful emotion that builds quite delightfully towards the hair raising crescendo. The guile with which XXXY teases out the vocal sample deserves a golf clap. Equally impressive is the psychedelic house thrust of "Ordinary Things", chopping up the vocal over a skipping deep bump, with a swathe of burning tripped out melodies the backdrop to purple synth flourishes and cheeky whoo samples. There's a simplicity to the production but it's overwhelmed by the thickness of sonic emotion XXXY achieves.