Mantis by Lujiachi

Lujiachi - Mantis EP [OMB003]

Two years after his last release, Taipei producer Lujiachi returns in 2022 with Mantis, a new EP focused on heavy, percussion-driven tracks that roll out at around the 100 BPM mark. Each cut is tied together by snarling, fuzzed-out bass and metallic drum sounds, sounding like hard drum blaring out of a busted Marshall stack. In the brutal opener “Link,” sludge metal bass tones mingle with a reoccurring sample of labored breathing. Kick and snare are buffeted by all manner of glass-breaking and metal-smashing percussive noise, which threaten to tear the track apart yet somehow end up just making the groove even stronger. The title track begins with a crackle of distortion, announcing the arrival of a rumbling bassline that moves with a brash swagger echoing Lujiachi’s club edits of old school Taiwanese pop. As an eerily insectoid plucked synth figure stalks the high end, the kick locks into a 4/4 stomp to draw us to a lento violento-like conclusion.

Lujiachi’s peers in Taipei’s underground scene also contribute two remixes: psychedelic explorers Mong Tong transform “Link” into a launchpad for waves of pentatonic surf guitar, while emerging producer Sandy’s Trace retools the same track for maximum club pressure.

Taipei based label focusing on avant-garde sounds.

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