Shadow Child: "unpredictable for me.. rinse support likely"
Renaissance Man: "A1 is great!"
Funk D'Void: "Unpredictable is the jam"
Jori Hulkonen: "awesome tracks...! can't wait to play these on a big system"
Ripperton: "Boss white boy ahahaah nice title! and nice song! Really original one! Thanks"
Breach: "I really like unpredictable"
J.Phlip: "ya this is definitely some stuff i can play!"
Christian Martin: "Shado is sick"
James Zabiela: "Laga Luvin is big! Thanks"
Mella Dee: "Laga Luvin is the stand out for me, tribal vibes on it."
DFRNT: "Really nice to see someone veering from the usual 4-4 tedium. Will try and support this!"
Ben Mono: "Loving this release and will def feature it in my next radioshow"
Other, less vocal early support from the likes of Roska, Jamie George, Marcel Dettmann, Groove Armada, B.Traits, Claude VonStroke, and more...
Le Mans-born, Montreal-based Victor Brulé has amassed quite the impressive track record in his short career as Fobator – vetted by the likes of Top Billin, Feadz, Sound Pellegrino, Burn Studios, and Rinse France. His re-launch as Foba for the “Boss White Boy” EP sees him applying the same functionalist approach as per the truncation of his moniker, resulting in 4 exquisite trax of playful club ferocity.
This couldn’t be more welcome by Tessier-Ashpool’s adaptive ‘machine music doctrine’. Despite both NY and Chicago tribal house inflections, Foba doesn’t default to 4/4 – his rhythms span (and incorporate) countless regional quirks, having classic drum machines work in tandem to produce highly optimized dancefloor solutions. And despite Victor’s perky personality, French-touched origins and tape-saturated productions, his sound is by no means warm or twee – a cold, distant, spatial aesthetic pervades the trax, with even the most luminous and melodic moments bearing little allegiance to funk. Striking a balance between visceral and contemplative, between escapist and introspective, this is this generation’s acid house, sans the 303.
The titular “Boss White Boy” best exemplifies this. Leading with a menacing, yet inviting “listen to me” chant, it wastes no time introducing its eponymous hook, which is repeated throughout. A snap-happy, oft-syncopated tribal house beat provides the foundation atop which skittering UFO percussion reverberates, and the track seemingly constantly builds up, until a bell tolls. The Dubbel Dutch or Nguzunguzu-indebted “Laga Luvin” blends Jersey and dembow into a paragon distilment of tropical rave candy. “Shado” is an 808 and 909 high intensity workout regimen, and an example in the continued effectiveness of the rimshot roll. And contrary to its name, it features the most fearlessly uplifting moments on the EP. Closer “Unpredictable” is a smooth operand - both a unifying nod to Foba’s earlier work, and an inverted, fractured love letter to UK funky.
Take heed of Foba’s intro chant, and listen to him. Intently.
credits
released October 27, 2014
Written, produced & mastered by Foba.
Artwork by Liar and Borealis.
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