Anna-Marie Odubote is the kind of producer who’ll lock herself inside her studio for a week, only to emerge from it with the best mix of the summer. Odubote is also an exceptional figure on the British scene because it is impossible to place her in just one scene. Under the name Anz, she has been mixing up elements from all corners of the hardcore continuum with such radicalism that it is not only impossible to pigeonhole her sound, but also to keep your feet still. For her Ninja Tune debut »All Hours,« she tries her hand at storytelling: the six tracks are supposed to be the soundtrack of a fictional 24-hour rave. Accordingly, the EP starts slowly with buttery basslines and glistening synths before George Riley’s vocals turn »You Could Be« into a somewhat belated summer jam. After the electro/UK garage hybrid has successfully rung in the first shift on the dance floor, »Real Enough to Feel Good« picks up on with rhythms between garage and dubstep that lead its audience deeper into the night. »Inna Circle« lets classic 1980s electro clash with jungle, before »Last Before Lights« mixes up jungle breaks and rave signals. After that, the outro with its retrofuturistic new age sounds gives you enough time to rinse out your nose thoroughly and tuck yourself back into bed – soon it’s Monday again and you’ll only be four nights away from doing all of this again. In its entirety, »All Hours« is a one colourful trip and thus another rarity in the field of dance music: an EP that tells a story to its audience instead of just offering DJs something to work with. Just the kind of release that only Odubote could pull off.
All Hours
