- Apart from an outing for Phonica earlier this year, Liam O'Shea has stuck to releasing his tough, grainy house and techno on his vinyl-only Seaghdha label. Having now shut down Seaghdha, the Sheffield producer is reopening for business as Hope Works, named after the warehouse space that he runs in his home city. Extending the brand is likely to be a wise move, as Hope Works has rapidly built a rep for attracting some of dance music's most illustrious names to the site of this former armoury. Levon Vincent, Ben Klock and Carl Craig are just some who've played alongside residents O'Shea and veteran Sheffield DJ Chris Duckenfield over the past 12 months.
"Capacity Creep" is made with a warehouse space in mind. Its piledriving beat leaves a vapour trail of reverb with each hit, as evil synths are accompanied by a grossly distorted baritone. It's the kind of track that thrives in low-ceilinged, post-industrial spaces. "Anneal" doesn't have the evil charm of "Capacity Creep," instead working its magic with a touch more subtlety. There are nods to UK garage in its skipping hi-hats and to dubstep in its quaking bass, and at one point a reconstructed Amen break makes an appearance. And if the heads-down bass workout of "Black Plate" doesn't quite hit the standards set by the others, it should at least be a useful tool.
TracklistA1 Capacity Creep
B1 Anneal
B2 Black Plate