[Swamp 81 Records]

Every now and then a tune comes along that’s played by just about everyone and becomes nearly ubiquitous. Last year’s “Hyph Mngo” was the ultimate expression of this, and while I enjoyed the tune like many others, I wondered how it became so much more successful than just as good if not better sides from Pangaea, Untold, and Sigha, also on Hotflush Two. Now, if you’re listening to the same mixes I am, you’ll find “Footcrab” by Addison Groove (born Antony Williams, better known as Headhunter) similarly inescapable in spite of its lack of crossover appeal to the Pitchfork crowd. This time, however, I believe I know how it’s become the biggest tune around.

Although I’m at a loss to define a “footcrab,” I know how easy it is to become hooked by the mind-numbing repetitions of “Footcrab'”s title fired over triplet kicks and 808 hits, sweetened by slight touches of synth tone. Inspired by Chicago juke and adorned with artwork aping that of Chicago institution Trax, “Footcrab” barges into your ear canal and refuses to leave weeks after the stop button has been pressed. Flipside “Dumbsh*t” keeps things funky but tones down the intensity a bit. It uses the same tools as the A side but emerges less effective, as well as the more firmly “dubstep” of the two (if such a word is even useful anymore). Regardless if you love or hate its unswerving chant, its undeniable effectiveness means we should all ready ourselves for a full-scale “Footcrab” invasion.