Live Review: Body Promise expertly curate their final compilation, 'Smooth Sensation'
Sydney radio-show-come-record-label BODY PROMISE have today shared their final compilation in a series of three. The series kicked off with the many shades of the underground on Harmony From A Dominant Hue in 2016, then followed it up with curated percussive cuts on Fantastic Effect, and they've today left us with potentially their best bit of curation yet, Smooth Sensation.
We wrote about them last week as our label of the week, and for good reason too.
Spanning 12 strong cuts, the compilation promises listening across an entire spectrum of sounds from artists all around the country representing the various intersections of the underground.
Don't miss a beat with our FREE daily newsletter
Melbourne's Fia Fell eases us in with sombre ambience on opener 'Ladder' that builds in intensity, and settles into itself as it folds away neatly at the track's end. Sydney's Low Flung continues the ambience with the opening of 'Pay It Forward', quickly dipping us into dissociative dub for the rest of the track. Freda & Jackson slowly peel in the percussion on 'Flux', giving us shimmering hi-hats and defined dub with a touch of breaks in for good measure. Doug of Body Promise and Fishing takes us in on track four with his HED Ardennes project. 'Acid Funk' surrounds you with panned chants, a silky smooth bassline and booming synth stabs.
On track five, Sydney's Letabruthaknow gets bass-heavy on 'DANCEFLOORPULLINUP' serving up a hefty slice of rave-ready raucousness. Keeping in stead with the intensity increase, Fishing's The Ghan drops us into a hypnotic pool of metallic licks, pulsing bass and woozy echoes. Over the halfway point, Melbourne's Waterhouse creates a ghostly concoction of industrial minimalism and occult pads, while Lou Karsh on track eight brings blissful, bouncy electro on 'XMET3R'.
Sydney's Andy Garvey takes it up a notch on 'Welcome To Infinity', offering intense, spacious acid and juxtaposing that with lush pad chords. Lucy Cliché takes us for a dive into the 'Ladies Pool', putting her DIY approach to producing on show and leaving us with a thumping, woozy, aquatic number. In a similar manner, DJ Yoni offers an Acid Mix of 'For The Sex Havers', throwing us straight in with that crunchy bassline and leaving us to nod along with those warped vocal samples. And finally, track 12 sees Adelaide's Emily Glass take it all home with club ambience on 'Worker', a thought-provoking track that leaves us in its closing moments with the sensation of satisfaction.
Curation is something the team at Body Promise are absolutely no strangers too. Smooth Sensation ticks all of the boxes that the ethos of Body Promise surrounds. It's explorative, pushes to the fore artists and sounds who are making interestingly notable music right now and best of all, it serves as a moment in time; a snapshot into Australia's underground at present time.
Art by Russell Fit
Words by CAITLIN MEDCALF
SEE ALSO
More From Our Network
