EP Review :: Frett - EP3

Frett

EP3

May 12 2014 (Self release, digital)

9/10

Words: Linn Branson

A rather unimaginative title for an EP, even if it is the third of three released - which were, funnily enough, entitled...'EP1' and 'EP2'. But don't let that put you off, because like a book should not be judged on cover alone, neither should you be put off this five-track work by its name because the content inside you will find, is good. Actually, really very very good.

The East Anglian duo - Simon Lucas-Hughes and Elliott Buckle - behind Frett have obviously been busy communing with the flat open landscape of the region in conjuring inspiration, for this feels wide, and lavish. An idea of which was given with lead single 'Porcelain', with its satisfying combination of soulful vocals and silky synths. Appearing here on this EP now, it still sounds as atmospheric and engaging as it builds over three-minutes-plus before reaching dynamic ending, as it did when first heard some months ago.

Within seconds of hearing Lucas-Hughes' falsetto vocal swirl in and around your head in an hypnotic way amidst electronically worked beats and pulses, you have to work through each track without pressing pause. What makes it more interesting is the weaving together of vague elements of different styles from jazz to electronic through chilled-out psychedelia and experimental which often blur in order to keep each track from veering too far into one area.

'Silent Alarm' with its deep, ponderous opening interspersed with choppy electronic beats, harmonised vocals echoing like a ghostly wraith and 'alarm' ending has enough unique markers to make this one of two stand-outs amidst the five that need to be played on repeat.  Like much electronic music the lyrics are often secondary to the synthetic sounds that are being created, and in the second half of this track never have they sounded so absorbing and creatively mixed.

Elsewhere, new single 'Milk' is a woozy and languid vocal affair around clippy beats punctuated by sharp synth strikes, while bringing in friend and Frett photographer Clarice Parrott to lend vocals to 'Black and White' adds another dimension: a velvet yin cushion to the staccato yang beats.

The spoken intro to 'Amphetamine' leads into it proper in a hazy way with the vocals  - and especially the effects added in the last part - making this something of spine-tingler, without recourse to any substances in order to fall head-first into it. This is the second of the two EP highlights without doubt; its "lead me into the ocean/pull me into the sea" refrain, compelling and memorable.

'EP3', despite the blandness of its title, is a five-piece stunner.