The wibbly deep house revival starts here
Who They?
Not a brand of performance-enhancing dog food to turn your mutt into a wannabe greyhound – this is the work of two Peckham-based dance music producers associated with the trendy Squareglass label, Bunki and Ballerino. As Athlete Whippet the pair have notched up four singles, a couple of remixes and have an EP in the bag for release later this year.
Why Athlete Whippet?
It’s a classic case of the sum exceeding the parts. Whereas Bunki and Ballerino’s solo singles have traded in bleepy ambience, minimal techno and wonky nu-soul, the Whippet presages a deep house revival while seamlessly nodding to the shrouded mythology and sampleadelica pioneered by the likes of Daft Punk. Funky stabs, disco riffs, wobbly synth melodies, soulful vocal snatches, jazzy percussion and house piano sprinkles. It’s all here on tracks like ‘Complain’ and the irrepressibly smooth throb of latest single ‘Friend Of Mine’. They’re tracks that give you that Balearic-friendly feeling. It’s a style that’s rightly attracted a big thumbs-up from astute trendsetters like Laurent Garnier along the way and sits them neatly alongside fellow house kleptomaniacs like Ross From Friends.
Tell Us More…
There’s an emotional sensitivity and vulnerability to tracks like ‘Tired Of Being Alone’ (sadly not a cover of the Al Green classic, but still reverentially soulful) missing from the typically blunt-edged music intended for dancefloors. Taken all together, the music of Athlete Whippet is enough to get veteran, emotionally-spent 90s clubbers misty-eyed while also appealing to anyone who feels that maybe the world has become a little cruel and unforgiving, but who are still 100 per cent down to party.
‘Friend Of Mine’ is out on Squareglass
