Bleep

With the established rise of the internet and unprecedented access to millions of musical styles, along with the cross-pollinations of distinct cultural expressions in major cities (and by extension, their underground dance spaces), any working artist today easily resists proper categorisation.

What makes the pairing of London-based producers/DJs Itoa and Lean Low so significant is the revelatory unity of their individual styles. Itoa — aka Alex Godoy, according to the only vague sources readily available — loudly made his name in the left-field clubs of London by mixing Jamaican sound system bombast with the comparable high-energy chicanery of footwork and juke, putting his breakneck speed cuts on lock with 2016’s Persuasive Percussion. Meanwhile, serial collaborator Lean Low proves harder to pin down, having worked in multifarious veins of off-kilter trap instrumentals and left of centre UK funky and garage, joining forces with the likes of DJ Dubplates, Walter Ego and vocalists Gavlyn, Slick Don and Blimes.

Moreover, joint effort Icy EP moves beyond genre classification in a way befitting its anything-goes, no-nonsense dancefloor magnetism. There’s the pendulous, clipped dancehall of ‘Late Nite Riddim’, made jagged by vintage acid modulation; the UK garage start-stop pomp of ‘Trippin’’ sending Artful Dodger vibes to space and back. But the giant pick & mix of styles doesn’t end with the strength of its masterful creators. Shokryme goes hard all over title track ‘Icy’, re-emerging with a sound system infantry all before Warrior Queen brings things to a head with the bodacious ‘Thank U’, all auto-tune and fire.

Vinyl Tracklisting
Side A
A1. Icy (ft. Shokryme)
A2. Late Nite Riddim
A3. Thank U (ft. Warrior Queen)

Side B
B1. Trippin'
B2. Icy (Instrumental) [Vinyl Exclusive]
B3. Thank U (Instrumental) [Vinyl Exclusive]