Tape-Echo

Kowton: Show Me/Keep Walking Review Joe Cowton A.K.A Kowton delivers the latest 12” ‘Show me/Keep walking’ on the Naked Lunch Imprint. The label hosts a platform for some of the finest electronic music and this release is no exception. Following up on his work on Idle hands and the recent Livity Sound 12” with peverelist, 2011 has been a thoroughly strong year for Kowton and he’s going from strength to strength. Upon hearing the combination of both Kowton and Naked Lunch I knew it was bound to be sheer quality. Kowtons sound is a highly distinct one, recognisable after just a handful of releases and this really shines through here. ‘‘My approach is quite simple: use samples to make raw grooving tracks. I try and keep the tracks down to a minimum number of elements and make the most of what's there. I'm really into trying to give the music a certain air too: whether that's a hint of seediness or dirtiness or whatever’’. His approach is fully conveyed in this 12” with two exceptional ‘raw grooving tracks’. ‘Show me’ pounds in with prominent kicks and sharp hats. It brings a sinister tone with its eerie, almost horror film gate swinging sounds in the background. The female vocals add a degree of sordidness alongside rumbling subs which create the atmosphere. There’s a real dreamlike addition mid-way as Kowton introduces some truly beautiful sounding chords to the equation, resulting in a mixture of moods that effortlessly gel together to make for an intriguing and articulate piece of music. ‘Keep walking’ is a slower groove that incorporates the quality over quantity ethic with few elements involved, however the end result is very rich and full in sound. There’s more of a house vibe to this one and less of an experimental nature than ‘show me’. It founds itself on simplistic, precise beats and luscious synth chords. The ’keep walking’ vocal alongside its thudding, moody bass give the song a steady momentum and a heavy feel. ‘’Both the tunes just represent aspects of what I was listening to at the time: 'Keep Walking' is a nod to Dopplereffekt and the Other People Place, 'Show Me' was inspired by the textures of T++, Shed etc’’.  Another exemplary addition to Naked Lunch and shows Kowton in top form, I asked Joe how he felt having a 12” on the label; ‘’It’s great to have something out finally on NL. Micky first spoke to me about releasing on the label when it was in its formative stages, it's taken a little while to find the right tunes but it feels like it's been worth the wait. The labels released some killer bits so far and it's quite flattering to be part of the same catalogue as Stingray, Instra:Mental and Breakage’’. Put simply; this is excellent music on a red 12”. Charlie Davis-Miller