Warrior One – ‘5ths’ EP

We at TNG first heard Warrior One nearly two years back with UK bass/DnB mashup ‘Fyah’. His ability to cook up blistering hot potatoes using ingredients borrowed from yesteryear – plenty of drum and bass, ’90s piano chords, breaks and a healthy sprinkling of jungle – has taken a new leap as fresh EP ‘5ths’ pulls off a house and garage hybrid release which highlights a musical education based not only in the sounds of the 140-plus grooves of the ’90s, but also the underground schools of trans-Atlantic dance music.

It’s funny how sounds and scenes come and go. They slip away from all but the most passionate ears and re-emerge refreshed and repackaged for modern dancefloors with all the spirit and soul of their forbearers but expressed in modern tongues. With 5ths, Warrior One has declared himself oracle to the classical sounds of the UK and US undergrounds – the link between two worlds.

5ths will be Warrior One’s first release on the Losing Suki label when it touches down next month and boy it’s a big one! Title track ‘5ths’ has an instant impact – a nostalgic familiarity but something completely new. Like a modern incarnation of ‘RIP Groove’ but distinct in its own right. A throbbing bassline and a beat packing plenty of punch with a side order of swing, airhorns and shifting synth sweeps, 5ths is a revival of that late 90’s sound my generation were raised on.

If 5ths is a throwback to the UK house and garage scene then first track on the flip, ‘NYC’, definitely has its roots on the other side of the pond. Killer keys underlie vocal and MC licks and a plum bass track that give the cut a tightly produced yet raw rhythm.

Final track ‘Only You’ features sweeping pads crammed with emotion and the meaty bassline adds to the sense of grandeur, a perfect finish to a quality EP. Only You certainly has a touch of rave and liquid about it and the producer-turn-alchemist has played a blinder in managing to meld so many different influences into something that works so well. In fact, we’d say that is definitely the case for the whole EP.

‘5ths’ EP is available from 27th January 2014 on 12” vinyl and digital download.