MUSIC: A Class EP From VACATETHEROOM

VACATETHEROOM Press Photo.jpg

The local producer is here to stay…

Earlier this year, VACATETHEROOM came from seemingly nowhere to drop an excellent remix for the Daniel Joshua single ‘Hivemind. With its combination of UK Garage flavours and Jon Hopkins-like sawtooth production, it was quite a statement from a relatively unknown producer. However, if there were any doubts over his skills, his upcoming Telecommunication EP on Lost Properties should alleviate any concerns. It’s an absorbing release, and with roots in everything from electronica to UKG to ambient, there is something for everyone.

Being a first-generation Australian, with Hong Konger, German and Portuguese background, VACATETHEROOM’s sound comes from all corners of the globe. Commenting on his own process, VACATETHEROOM reflects that “these tracks were born out of the need to escape, and to create my own environment. Each an experiment, a kind of transportation into alternate worlds.’ And traces of that world-building is super evident here.

A trademark across much of the release are energetic percussion that reminds of Burial’s softer moments and touching melodies that would make Boards of Canada chuffed.

Nowhere is this more obvious than ‘Nightshift’, a stuttering 4/4 workout with various melodic layers in complete harmony; it’s like listening to an aural play. Broken rhythms take control on both ‘Do U Believe’ and ‘Refraction’: The former featuring a professional-sounding vocal delivery that could easily double as the theme song of the latest James Bond movie; the latter a highly impressive electronica piece packed with super pretty colours and a thirst for fanciful escape. However, it’s not as pretty as ’When Humans Fall Asleep’, a hypnotising ambient piece whose thick strings of melodies wouldn’t sit out of place on a James Blake album.

Yeah, we know: those are some big names to lump with the local producer. However, we’re sticking with that sentiment and raising it: VACATEHEROOM push the more monochromatic element of those acts through a prism for a colourful and kaleidoscopic new sound that is undeniably his own. Don’t heed his name and stay in this room. You won’t be disappointed.

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