Minted in 2009, the bijou Just Another Beat imprint has quietly chalked up an impeccable record for refreshing takes on deep house. Its four two-track releases are evenly spread between two producers, Prostitune and Jouem, who are anonymous but distinct. The sense of care and symmetry inherent in the label’s management runs strongly through the music as well. Prostitune’s latest, Justfixit, presents two wavy, rolling tracks that are as innovative as they are eccentric.
“Justfix” staggers in in a clunky daze; the kicks are weighty, the snares are a bit askew, and the warbling pads have clearly been inflected by the portamento knob. The addition of a frisky bass line gives it some structure, and the pads swooping around it are suddenly tranquil. The percussion, meanwhile, is constantly mutating, augmented by some shrill synth sounds and distant vocal samples. “NJ Turnpike,” on the flip, is a sumptuous dub house workout. It’s led by sinewy chords, neatly spaced between percussion that bounds and shuffles; they sit together in a trance-like loop, coated by more of those portamento pads. Midway through, a synth solo ripped straight from one of Crockett and Tubbs’ spaced-out nightdrives bursts in, the sentiment floating above the tense churn. Both compositions strike a balance between optimally tracky and memorably odd, sitting very much in line with the aesthetic Prostitune established on 2009’s Money Nugget.
awesome record