Spencer Parker’s Work Them Records has proved to be a hit with DJs worldwide, establishing itself as a provider of tried and tested dance floor tools. For my money, Work Them has always shone brightest when it stepped away from its rigid percussive workout template. In the past, efforts from White Materials’ Young Male, the kaleidoscopic Pittsburgh Track Authority and SV:T – ably assisted by Arttu in remix form – have stood out with their own unique stamp on the label’s template.
Added to this list is the relatively unknown Brooklyn based producer P. Leone, who hits upon emotive techno form with ‘The Exit 8’. It leads off with ‘Atria‘, which needs to do little more than work a twinkling arpeggio over a punchy kick. The momentum is created by the moments when the decay lengthens until the entire soundstage is engulfed in one decisive movement. Effectiveness in efficiency.
"Instant gratification with style is achieved on the leading pair, so much so that they become your defacto choices for tension and release."
The momentum in ‘Sequences Of Attraction‘ is a different beast. It’s motif is to switch between two distinct patterns. The first is of rumbling subs and an atonal choo-choo sound that gives the impression of a freight train rumbling through the night, illuminating with its solitary dim headlight. The second, the switch incarnate, happens when the large synth drops in, gratifying like umami.
While ‘Miradouro‘ and its “Nuxx” style pan hits doesn’t quite match its companions, as it’s efforts to land a big hook slips tantalisingly between the fingers, it doesn’t really matter. Instant gratification with style is achieved on the leading pair, so much so that they become your defacto choices for tension and release.
The Exit 8 is out now via Work Them Records, order a copy on Juno.
TRACKLIST
1. Atria
2. Sequences Of Attraction
3. Miradouro
Discover more about P Leone and Work Them Records on Inverted Audio.