Having been extensively road-tested this past year by DJs including Daniel Avery, HAAi and Gerd Janson, Highdive arrives with tangible anticipation. The work of less-than-shadowy figures Gramrcy and John Loveless, the pair have passed lockdown and beyond remixing artists such as WH Lung, Discovery Zone and Ghost Culture. Debuting their first original material, closely following Gramrcy’s recent appearance on Loveless’s own Hot Concept imprint, Highdive is a long anticipated explosion of energy.
Built around a sonic-boom breakdown, glossy rave chords and pounding post-punk drums, Highdive feels immediately at home on Phantasy. Having worked closely alongside founder Erol Alkan in recent years to shape the imprint’s diverse output, Loveless’ collaboration with the Peach Discs founder nods to the electro landscape of the label’s earliest days. Having never left dance floors since, Gramrcy & John Loveless take a golden opportunity to plunge dancers into the sublime and the ridiculous.
While a stripped-down ‘Beats Mix’ sees the pair adopt a less-maximal approach, leave it to Schacke to stretch Highdive into hardcore rave heaven. The already-influential Copenhagen artist underscores his refreshing funk in the ‘fast-techno’ scene through which he has risen, turning the screws and upping the tempo with intense but elastic results.
Gramrcy & John Loveless – ‘Highdive’ drops on Phantasy Sound on 3rd June 2022
Highdive is available to pre-order on a limited white-label pressing.
Digital artwork is kindly reproduced with permission of wildlife photographer Alan MacFayden, portraying a Kingfisher diving into the River Dee, Scotland. McFayden estimates the shot took around six years, or 720,000 attempts, to capture precisely.
Tracklist:
A1 Highdive
A2 Highdive (Beats Mix)
B1 Highdive (Schacke Remix)
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