Peppery New Jersey house with a garage feel is what No Artificial Colours are offering up in their latest EP, The Menace. The South East London duo have been pumping out bouncy house beats in the style of Jamie Jones for only a couple of years, but have already made quite a name for themselves. Debuting on Kerri Chandler’s MadTech Records, No Artificial Colours follow their recent smash, Reach for Me (Ft. Alex Mills).
The Menace is not really all that menacing. It’s simple, big room house with big beats and distorted soul vocals; more fog-and-lasers than warehouse grit. They couple hip-hop breaks with rounded poppy basslines, speaking to that Ibiza hedonism from which they originated. It’s cheesy but it’s good fun, and the boys can’t be faulted for people pleasing. This being said, the EP doesn’t always stay in the sunlight. The second track, Hypnotize, follows a more murky path. A mellow acid groove runs through layers of warbled synth and low-end reverbs in an interesting break from the other two more upbeat numbers. Channelling their garage past is what gives No Artificial Colours a little bit more edge which is exciting to hear. All in all, The Menace treads a well worn path, flirting with that highly-refined party sound but delivering something a little more authentic and fresh.
