Rating: 6 / Format: 12" / Label: Seclusiasis
Hot on the heels of his debut LP, Brooklyn-based singer-songwriter Kotchy (aka Chad Curlow) rummages around in his odd little cupboards to bring us the I’d Have To Be High EP, with a few fresh compositions and a deluge of remixes. It makes for curious listening, and the haggard old comparisons practically write themselves – "Kotchy sounds like Pharrel and Prince struggling to talk over Flying Lotus furiously kicking Beck’s head in" – but while there are traces of all these artists to be found, the overall effect merits more detailed appraisal.
‘Check Out My Keychain’ kicks things off, shuffling to a dubby rhythm guitar. Bursts of bright synthetic melody dart in and out of a roomy, well-balanced mix. ‘Superstar’ boogies from light to dark, with bumpy disco licks making way for sinister, bendy synths and "you take the cute one, I’ll take the ugly bitch" lyrics. ‘Party Your Blues Away’, featuring Benni E’s competent bars, is a highlight; anthemic in size, it swings from Shadow-like verses, laced with warped cinematic strings, to a chorus that’s sure to unite the (student) masses.
Apparently, Curlow is most proud of the opening song’s hook, as it is treated to a pile of remixes that make up half the EP’s tracklist. The Chap’s mix is my pick – easing the hook into a gentle 2-step rhythm, with subtle pads and bits of guitar, that have more than a whiff of Kirk Hammett about them – an odd combination, but one that works. Whether or not "girl check out my keychain" deserves quite this much scrutiny is another matter, but there’s lots of good stuff in between, and on this basis, I might even check out the album.
Richard Attley
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