Over the past 18 months Modern Love have been creeping ever closer to musical epiphany. From Demdike Stare, the Andy Stott mini-albums and solo work from Miles Whittaker, to this debut release from G.H. (Gary Howell, the other half of Pendle Coven), their in-house style has become ever more extreme. This extremity has manifested itself both in tempo range (from slow to very slow) and in the musical conflict brought about by a consuming darkness paired with moments of ethereal deliverance. As such, this EP is an aural gumbo of giddy and seductive complexity; warm, haunting and highly unlikely to be served by any other label.
Opener “Ground” sets an exequial kick to a low pace, while ancient vinyl purposefully crackles and a concave sub cements the mix. It is to Howell’s credit that he can evoke immersive and consuming audio out of such sparse elements. The movement over eight minutes amounts to a scorched earth funeral march — pure Armageddon dub. “Earth” is a slightly brighter affair, referencing old jungle records through the chopped up bass stabs. A spliced soul vocal gives the track some invigorating color, cutting through the gray-scale of the package and taking Modern Love to its most energetic and upbeat in quite some time. “Albedo” again uses static and crackle as a rhythmic device, maintaining an even-handed technoid groove that is clearly influenced by the ghost of techno past. The pads in particular evoke chemical memory of Rhythm & Sound at their most hypnotic, but the bright hi-hat pattern distinguishes it from the murky depths of the A-side.
On the Ground EP, G.H. provides a comprehensive and personal response to the recent Modern Love catalog. Its three tracks exist within the context of the increasingly idiosyncratic space that the imprint seems intent on operating within; a primeval sounding operation that twists the popular mechanics of dance music ever further away from the club. That he has managed to bring more accessible elements to the table without watering down the style is testament to the skill of a producer playing a devastating end game.
