Review:
A belated return for one-time Lost My Dog regular YSE, sometime member of East Midlands deep house crew Rhythm Plate. Plangent Rave is arguably his best for some time, showcasing his obvious skills without resorting to contemporary cliches. Lead cut "Innocence" is particularly impressive, bolting odd vocal samples and woozy, seasick melodies onto a robust analogue bassline reminiscent of Brooks' "Clix" and nicely swinging beats. The stabbing synth strings and thickset bassline of "Happy Bubble" - a kind of anything-goes shuffler with 30-something rave intentions - also impress, while "Substitute" pops and crackles with sub-bass heaviness and retro-futurist charm. The bassline, in particular, is fantastic.
Review:
A shining light on the East Midlands house scene with Rhythm Plate, YSE has been carving more of a solo niche of late. His thing is woozy and bassy off-kilter house, and on Never/Forever he does this particularly well. The title track is the most conventional on here: all deep and retro 90s house vibes and the dreamy and emotional gospel grooves of "The Sky Fell Out" is an EP highlight. Elsewhere "The Beautiful Dream" is a skippy bleep-fest and "What It Means To You" wraps things up with scattershot brittle beats and dubby rhythms.
Review:
This four-tracker marks a slight departure for Ant Plate (formerly of East Midlands deep house veterans Rhythm Plate) and his YSE project. Musically, it offers a slight tweak on his usual chunky deep house grooves, with Frank Carter III delivering soaring, soulful vocals reminiscent of US garage's finest. New Jersey garage is a good reference, because the included Giom remix of "Magic In Your Eyes" sounds like some kind of long lost '90s garage jam. It's arguably the outstanding track on the EP, though it's pushed hard by the warm bounce of "Play On" and classic US deepness of "I Don't Want Love". It all adds up to an excellent excursion from Plate.
