QUANTIC レコード& CD

Review: Now busy running a popular studio in Brooklyn, Will Holland has less time to devote to his popular Quantic project. While that is very much our loss, he does at least reappear occasionally to remind us of his talents. 'Tropics', his first release for well over a year, is therefore a rare treat - with the emphasis on treat. The A-side title track does a good job in combining his often-explored Cuban and South American musical influences with the bass-heavy shuffle of Prins Thomas style dub disco. Over on side B, 'Born Again', featuring Laura Roy on vocals, doffs a cap to his formative releases of the 2000s on Tru Thoughts, while 'Japanese Knives' is a chunky, string-laden workout reminiscent of some of the Quantic Soul Orchestra's most picturesque instrumentals.

Review: Since he's such a prolific collaborator and creator of bands, it's easy to overlook the fact that Will Holland hasn't released a solo album as Quantic for almost five years. "Atlantic Oscillations", then, is a welcome return - particularly since Tru Thoughts boss Robert Luis thinks it's Holland's "most cohesive and intricate album to date". It's certainly a strong collection, with Holland wrangling multiple styles, tempos and musical influences to create cuts that defy easy categorization. While there are downtempo moments, "Atlantic Oscillations" includes more bona-fide club cuts then he's delivered in recent years, with sun-kissed disco cut "September Blues", Cuban disco-funk workout "Atlantic Oscillations" and Afro-Latin house bumper "Motivic Retrograde" standing out.

Review: Following the success of their first collaborative album, 2017's Curao, Will 'Quantic' Holland and Colombian "folkloric" singer-songwriter India Gongora have once more joined forces for a second joint full-length. Designed as a musical exploration of "the nostalgia of impossible love", the set's uniquely eclectic, widescreen sound joins the dots between the traditional styles of Colombia's pacific coast, cumbia, rock, string-drenched South American ballads and the kind of hard-to-pigeonhole, musically intricate productions that were once the preserve of Rotary Connection's Charles Stepney. It's a terrific album all told, with Holland conjuring up genuine musical magic and Gongora delivering some of the most stunning sounding vocals of her career.