Premiere: The Phantom – “Earth Beat”

An adaptable character to say the least, Polish producer The Phantom has donned a number of hats over the past several years, traversing widescreen disco as Ptaki, fairly straightforward, but deeply affecting throwback house on LP1 (out now on Silverback Recordings) and, most recently, a predilection for grime and new age. LP2, out Monday on Silverback, couldn’t be different from his first Phantom album, both in terms genre of choice and general mood. LP2 is dense and searing beautiful, the sort of tempo-shifting tape that has really only come into existence in the past year or so and can only sort of be considered grime (or whatever). “Earth Beat” is the most outward-thinking track on the effort, a wobbling burner that periodically explodes with energy. Considered “proto-grime” by the producer himself, LP2 represents an exciting turn for a chameleonic producer and we can only hope he decides to stay in this lane.