Netsky is enjoying a period of great success at the moment, and it's certainly deserved. Boris has spent the last few years refining his incredible live show, which was badly needed to fill the space left when Pendulum abandoned live touring. Though not quite on that scale, the young producer has been able to significantly swell his fan base just through word of mouth about how great he and his band are live. Seriously, I went with some people to see Chase & Status when he was supporting. Some of them hadn't heard of him. Now we're about to go and see him again.
Of course, all of that would be meaningless if the music wasn't any good. Thankfully, though, Boris has got that covered too, and his latest single Running Low continues to prove it. Though the song has been around for a few weeks - it was released before this blog came into existence - the video has just been released, which gives me the perfect excuse to go back and review it. Read on to find out what we think about Netsky's latest song.
Netsky is currently preparing to release his new as-yet-untitled third album, and Running Low is the first single proper to come from it (you may recall, however, that he released another track last year for free called Without You). This time around, Boris has employed the mighty vocals of Beth Ditto to help him create yet another stadium anthem.
Running Low seems to very much be a continuation of what was started with his previous album, 2. That saw a progression to a more bombastic style of Drum & Bass designed to set the festival crowd alight, moving away from the more liquid style that people had become accustomed to. Not everyone was thrilled about that, but it worked, as the album proved a huge success, and the band are playing festivals all across this land and every other, it would seem.
Boris' latest offering does little to change that successful formula he's found, but that certainly doesn't mean it's a bad track. Oh no. Whilst it's perhaps not his strongest offering to date, Running Low is yet another great track within that formula, and the addition of Beth's vocals add a real sense of scale to proceedings.
The track starts off oh-so-quietly, to make room for Beth's vocals. The trademark Netsky synths slowly grow, and when the beat starts to creep in, you know you've got an out-and-out banger on your hands. The song tears along, with the euphoric chorus melody bound to be stuck in your head long after you've finished listening.
My main criticism would be that it seems to have been, to put it kindly, 'mastered for radio'. Running Low doesn't seem to have the usual clarity of Netsky's productions, something that a lot of people commented on when it was first released. Over time, you grow used to it, but there definitely seem to be some balance issues that could do with being addressed. It leaves the track feeling a bit emptier than you'll be accustomed to with Netsky. Perhaps that's what was being aimed for - I don't know. But it doesn't work for me.
Nevertheless, Running Low is still a fine track. It's not quite good enough to sit alongside last year's Without You (which is an absolute monster of a tune), or some of his other classics. But as a first taste of his new album, it'll do just fine, and I'm sure it'll fulfil what for Boris is now presumably the ultimate goal - sending your festival crowd berserk.
Netsky will be playing on the MainStage at this year's GlobalGathering on Friday 25 July. To buy tickets, click here, and to find out more about what EO has got planned for its coverage of the festival, click here.
The Octopus' Rating: 6/8
Release Details:
Name: Running Low (Feat. Beth Ditto)
Artist: Netsky
Label: Sony Music Entertainment UK
Release Date: 24 August
Purchase: iTunes (pre-order)
Writer, musician, and all-round top guy. I set up Excited Octopus. Currently, I'm on a one man team. It gets lonely sometimes. But I don't mind, because I love you all.
0 comments:
Post a Comment