Somatoast - Spit Swisha EP
Stepping into the new year with a bang, Somatoast comes ready to the party with a 2 track EP oozing with psy-dub goodness. A staple of psybient electronic music, Somatoast delivers once again on his crystal-clear mixdowns, excellent sound design, and musical affluence with a pair of tunes that will keep the head bobbing and the feet skipping along to steady rhythms and glitchy turn-arounds.
Geezer opens up the EP with a groovy hip-swing. The track jives along to a walking bassline, with asymmetrical glitches casually panning throughout the duration of the song. Light-weight arpeggios come and go along the mix, keeping the headspace from becoming too focused on just one auditory sensation. Gentle counter-melodies stab through on the 2s and 4s of each bar, keeping a steady and inviting bounce that adds a certain tropical flair to Geezer.
Spit Swisha brings home the EP with a well-balanced dance of popping drum lines and brightly colored melodies. Guitar licks flutter in and out of the track, following along an augmented musical scale and resonating on a subtle eastern vibe. Hi-hat shuffles keep the high-end full and vivacious, and sit perfectly in the percussive pocket between precisely EQ'd kicks and snares. All the while, there is the ever pervasive feeling of having been welcomed into a deranged, glitch-loving carnival.
Somatoast wastes no time with the choice tracks he has released throughout his career, and the Spit Swisha EP is no exception. As an American frontrunner of psychedelic bass music, he consistently delivers a rich porridge of aural slime, grit, wetness, and two-step percussion. As he's started 2018 on such a high note, it can only be surmised that the rest of the year will follow suit for this scintillating mastermind.