Joker: City Hopper / Output One Output Two
Tectonic

Bristolian Joker's clearly got his finger on the trigger right now, if these forward-thinking bombs are indicative of the twenty-year-old's skills. The downtempo skanking groove in “City Hopper” boasts a kick drum-and-snare combination so lethal it could prove decapitating but it's matched by Moog-styled synthesizer playing that's trippy, grimey, and incendiary all at once. Not a second's wasted in the track's stunning four minutes. Though hard to believe, the flip's “Output One Output Two” may be even better. For five minutes, Joker wields burning synth patterns—both high-pitched, Computer World-like flutterings and sub-bass growls—like light sabres overtop a biting rhythm track powered by snares that crack like buckshot. Flying Lotus and Kode 9 devotees will no doubt have already devoured the material but anyone else curious about the latest mutation developing overseas may want to get on board too.

January 2010