Ill Blu

Meltdown EP Ill Blu

The first Numbers release of 2011 comes from the elusive North London production duo Ill Blu. Elusive may be a word that is easily chucked about in todays scene but despite being regarded as one of the most feted UK Funky / House production teams in the country they rarely let go of their original material. There's a handful of remixes for underground and major label artists, the masterful Bellion twelve inch for Hyperdub and the odd appearance on pirate radio but that’s pretty much it. Yep, Ill Blu tracks have a very certain and obvious prestige; it’s all there, totally evident in their deployment of rhythm. The unit wholly personify the unrelenting charm and flex of a funky beat; slinky, tough, tribal and unique, whilst punishing speakers. Their productions positively work the floor and we’re stoked to reveal that their debut release for us, ‘Meltdown EP,’ shows no sign of them stopping this trend. Title track ‘Meltdown’ ripples into earshot with fast paced congas (the kind you can hear every Sunday when you’re strolling through that corner of Finsbury Park, over by the cycle park where that sickly sweet smell stains the air) rolling endlessly, flamming with intent, before the bomb like mid range tweaked bass line explodes and the kick drum pound really takes hold. Adding swelling strings and tremeloed melodics ‘Meltdown’ progresses into something a little more pensive, before the switch returns and that b-line drops in hard again. Building on that element of surprise the other two heaters here, ‘Overdose’ and ‘Chelt,’ set the scene with differing rhythms, enabling you to sink into the pattern of the drums before the bass slams you back into life. ‘Overdose’ wheels out one of those naggingly insistent Scratcha DVA-esque, nursery rhyme like lead lines - one of those that worms its way into everything you do for hours after you hear it. And it’s the same combination of simple sound banks and borderline maddening melodies that dominate ‘Chelt;’ its ras