- Around 2012 and 2013, the time of his early releases, Marquis Hawkes caused consternation: he was a British producer in Berlin with an African-American-sounding pseudonym making ghetto-house influenced tracks for labels in the UK and Holland. Debate on the possible rights and wrongs of Hawkes' persona and methods has rumbled on, with things coming to head again recently with a multi-way Twitter dust-up that ended with him deleting his account. Whatever your take on it all, it's difficult to deny that his EPs to date (a slew of them for Dixon Avenue Basement Jams and one each for Crème Organization and Clone Jack For Daze) have been peppered with excellent tracks, and this, his debut for fabric's in-house Houndstooth imprint, again contains plenty to recommend.
Fifty Fathoms Deep begins with "Can't Find A Reason," which, to exhilarating effect, teams a silky-smooth male vocal, female vocal flutters and a fat-free percussive spine. "The Way" features guest vocals from Sonar Kollektiv alumnus Stee Downes. It's the most straightforwardly soulful cut here, Downes's warming tones moving between gently metallic drums and layered pads. The disco/funk vocal shard and glowing Rhodes notes of "Fifty Fathoms" make for a relatively relaxed, jazzy start to the second side. "Fat Man" is the EP's standout track. A body-popping beat and chewy analogue bassline are joined by an irresistible, Neneh Cherry-ish vocal, while spacey synths complete a track that's likely to see heavy DJ use in the coming months.
TracklistA1 Can't Find A Reason
A2 The Way feat. Stee Downes
B1 Fifty Fathoms
B2 Fat Man