Named as a tribute to the journeys Nick has taken travelling to and from good friend BLM’s house in West London, Acton Route is a sonic excursion to the cosmos, riding on airy pads, rolling bass and crisp percussion. Its sonic palette opens up in the mid-section with a bubbly lead and metallic piano stabs drenched in capacious reverb. It’s a prime example of classy deep electronic music; emotive, personal and engaging. It’s late night house at its best.
On the flip is View from Baskerville (2013), a recent incarnation of an older unsigned track dedicated to those sunrise vistas on a July morning from a certain Freerotation festival in Wales. It truly befits its name; a warm yet haunting piece of house with a psychedelic slant. Soft white noise cushions a gut moving sub bass as ping pong percussion dances around the stereo field. The soft pads take up the weight of the melody as an animated lead is deftly ushered in, and with it comes that rawness and feeling Nick manages to coax out of his machines.
Rounding off the EP is the vinyl only cut Phthalo Blue; stripped back but still full to the brim with the spirit of its predecessors. See sawing string and vibrant lead sections move in and out of the mix over the punchy kick and fizzing hi hats. Soaked in warmth and feeling, it’s the icing on the cake for the first EP for Nick on boe… and it certainly won’t be the last.