Coyote Records x Force Majeure, 17 May, DINA
Coyote Records and Force Majeure came together to celebrate the release of Utah?'s latest EP, Bronze, with a party powered by forward-thinking grime and bass-centric music.
Ashley Holmes opened the night appropriately, touching on experimental club and Jersey club, while Ok Breez's set was an eloquent mix of grime, trap, hip-hop and other sounds. They made room for India Jordan's relentless hour of hard and dark techno and bass.
By the time Utah? opened his set with a filmic, weightless intro, the crowd had been taken into very different areas of music and it was refreshing to hear the distinctive sounds of his selection. His hour featured large portions of drill and a few unexpected bangers, like Apple's 'Chantes' and Skepta's 'Doin' It Again', much to the crowd's approval.
highly-charged tracks featuring unusual sounds
But the most captivating moments of Utah?'s performance, and some of the most memorable moments of the night, were when he played epic tracks from his own back catalogue. These included 'Signal', 'Bronze' and a VIP of 'Oxygen', highly-charged tracks featuring unusual sounds. This is precisely what makes Utah?'s strain of grime-dance so entertaining, and it kept it interesting on the night despite the technical issues he had to perform through.
Last Japan finished things off with a flawless performance, bringing the quality that listeners have come to expect from the east London don. Having heard Utah?'s EP before the night, his launch party was a worthy celebration of what is his finest work yet. It was also a good reminder of why Coyote Records and Force Majeure continue to champion these underground areas of music.
Akeem Balogun
