Glenn Davis: Better Daze EP
Yore
A year on from his Yore twelve-inch Soul On My Side, Dublin-based DJ and producer Glenn Davis returns with its sequel, the as-stellar Better Daze. His classic house material could be taken for the very embodiment of the Yore aesthetic, given the half-hour EP's melodic, soulful sound. The dynamic title cut locks in instantly with a pumping kick drum and builds layer by layer thereafter. Percussion, hi-hats, electric piano chords, and synthesizers add to the thrust of the production as it grows ever more urgent. As the track advances, Davis drapes a jazzy keyboard solo across the booming base as the swing swells to a near-ecstatic level. “Your Time” rounds out the A-side with a cut that suggests techno at its outset before quickly morphing into a sleek house strut. With percussion included and late-night synth atmospherics folded in, the breezy tune starts to sound like something you'd hear banging out of a Miami club in the wee hours.
On the flip, Davis brings the skipping house groove of "Inner Monologue” to a fever while also amplifying its sensory dazzle with layers of sparkling synth textures. It's the other B-side cut, “Dance,” however, that's the EP's most irresistible. Moody chords, hand drums, and a snappy groove set the scene, but it's the female vocalist's soulful delivery and vibes-like earworm that make the tune the standout it is. I've no idea whether Davis recruited an actual singer or used a sample, but the lines “Come and dance, come and dance, come and dance with me” and “If you want it, you can have it, won't you come and dance with me” bewitch in the best way imaginable, especially when repetitions ostensibly make them into mantras.February 2022