CADENZA48

After last year's massive 26 Miles EP, Gavin Herlihy is back on Cadenza, and he comes bearing what can only be seen as an instant anthem. Remember those foam toys, the ones where you just had to add water, and they'd swell into wonderful, unexpected shapes? "Back Burner" is a lot like that, but no water needed: just a needle in the groove, or a laser across the aluminum, is enough to send this sucker ballooning to enormous proportions.

It begins with a loop of standup bass and rippling cymbals. It's understated, even delicate, but right from the start there's something electrifying about the cadence. It's a rushing, skipping groove enlivened by a hint of a voice deep in the mix. And from there it only gets more intense. First there's an eerie, wordless vocal loop, a bluesy falsetto croon that sounds like a freight train barreling across open space. The percussion digs in: meaty kick drum, flashing tambourines and a steady patter of hand drums. Tersely plucked funk guitar adds to the polyrhythmic flux, like sticky, elastic spiderwebs strung between the beats. And high, lonesome wildpitch strings break it all wide open, bringing a delicious sense of relief. It's huge: a spine-tingling, hair-raising, sex-and-laughter kind of rush.

"Think" is just as powerful, but it courts a different kind of intensity. This time it's all about the hips, with a brute, half-speed bass line leading the way. Like classic Chicago house, this is raw, unvarnished stuff, with hard-edged congas, cowbells and hi-hats getting as nasty as they wanna be. There's a looped vocal—a cry of desire or pain, take your pick—that adds to the urgency, while plunging chords and trim analog synth leads add depth to the mix. It's hard to believe that something this insistent could feel so soothing.