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akito

Over the past several months, we’ve brought you a good deal of coverage on Trax Couture‘s globe trotting World Series, a string of EPs that has seen the London label enlist Dreams, Sylvere and Imaabs into the fold. World Series Vol. 5 sees TC bringing the series back around to London with Akito providing four indomitable club tracks to the table. Headed up by two excellent mixes of “Dalston Dips”, Akito’s latest is another percussive monster with loads of Jersey club, techno, grime and dancehall folded into tidy 130 packages. “Sordid Forfeit” grabbed our attention right off the bat, a confluence of grime’s square wave obsession and the monolithic kick pattern favored in Jersey. It’s a track that could be abetted with a Riko Dan, Flowdan or Stormzy vocal, but also exists on its own in a space cleared out by Mumdance, Logos and Slack. World Series Vol. 5 is out on Wednesday, February 25 and can be pre-ordered here.

akito art FINALIt’s not always easy to decipher the intention of a piece of electronic music. Sometimes, a vocal sample  (e.g. “jack”) or the basic structure of a song gives it away, but sometimes four-on-the-floor beats and grueling sub-bass timbres deceive. That being said, Sub Skank boss and London-resident Akito’s music is very clearly, specifically focused on the dancefloor. Whether the context is a push club, a derelict warehouse, or a manic house party, there will be no head-bobbing or shmoozing while an Akito joint is played out. Like many of his contemporaries, Akito takes a little from the video game sound palette of Eski, a little percussion from jungle and/or Jersey/Bmore and mutates it into a pounding, dancefloor beast. It’s foot stomping, wyle out music that is at once easily accessible and eminently strange. Maybe it’s the ballroom “ha”s or the or occasional patois vocals, but despite the innate heaviness of Akito’s productions and mixes, it all seems like a rather fun, approachable affair.

This certainly manifests itself in Akito’s Astral Plane mix, one of the most effortlessly fun collections we’ve featured to date and a rare taste of what Akito the producer has in store on his upcoming Metamessage EP. With a peppering of originals and tracks from Astral Plane favorites like Neana, Rushmore and Jam City, the mix summarily hits a near-perfect club music sweet spot, offering something to nearly every brand of discerning listener. Stream/download below and hit the jump for the full track list.

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akito

First grabbing our attention via his bubbling, maniacal “Fuck U All The Time” remix, London’s Akito Hearnshaw has been making a name for himself by crafting unremitting grime/techno derived drum tracks. Night Slugs’ Club Constructions series made the style trendy and it doesn’t look like it’s going to disappear anytime soon with producers like Akito and Neana championing the sound. “Bordello Bounce” is sparse, industrial and aggressive, expanding from a limited sound palette into a monolithic club machine. No word on whether the track (or last week’s equally massive “Aqua Tryst”, which you can stream after the jump) will see an official release, but I’m sure some enterprising labels are chomping at the bit to get a piece of Akito.

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