Norfolk based electronic musician, Luke Abbott, recently released Modern Driveway, a beautiful 5-song sampler of his refined ear for analogue craftmanship. A definitive step above his promising debut, Holkham Drones, Abbott has tapped into something sweet here with his new work. The title track opens the album with a slow build of insistent chord stabs and a subtle 808 line that softly swells underneath the arpeggio synths like something out of halcyon mid-90’s Detroit. Abbott ekes so much emotion out of this track, it’s hard to believe he’s able to outdo himself a few tracks later, yet that’s exactly what he does with penultimate track “Carrage”. It’s a beautiful and bubbly stomper with the requisite ‘pull the beat out of the mix and drop it back in mid-point’, and although I’ve heard this technique more than countless times, Abbott does it so well here, you’ll want to play the song again and again. Interspersed between the stunners are two subdued pieces, more align with the material on Holkham Drones. Overall, this is one of the finest electronic releases of the year, one that begs for repeat listens, and a sure-fire sign that Luke Abbott is about to blow up big time. Amazing stuff.
Listen to the title track below and read a great interview with Abbott talking about gear at Resident Advisor. Peace.
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