Wellington Electro-Soul outfit Electric Wire Hustle released their 3rd album The 11th Sky on September 30th2016.
EWH first appeared in the public eye with their self titled album in
2009 , and since then have also released Love Can Prevail in 2014
which was a world wide success that saw the band achieve some Cult
Fame in the UK and Europe.
This album combines some soulful grooves and smooth vocal harmonies with their tried and true Dub/electro rhythms.
It begins with the appropriately titled Go Slow, before dropping you into the hard-hitting and catchy, sample driven hip hop/soul grooves of Troublemakers. This song tells a tale with lyrics that seem familiar and personal to the listener.
The
band continues to showcase their diverse range of influences in the
following 5 tracks; with the up-beat feel of tracks Aeons and Golden Ladder, to the slow, soulful ballad I Light a Candle.
A personal highlight for me was the 8th track Red Window, which has a soulful Dub feel, reminiscent of early Fat Freddy's Drop. This track combines thick, soaring vocal harmonies, with a catchy guitar hook and a melody which very gently reels you in until you realize you've listened to it five times!
The final track March features a beautiful guest vocal from Experimental Soul artist Deva Mahal and is well worth a listen.
- Lora Thompson
With their debut self-titled album Electric Wire Hustle achieved cult status. A number one song on Hype Machine, five-star reviews from the likes of Okayplayer, and BBC Radio support from Gilles Peterson and Benji B secured them unwavering support internationally with a flood of production requests following.
Their sophomore album Love Can Prevail has continued the trend, winning best electronic album at the 2015 New Zealand Music Awards. Added to that is previous support from The New York Times and Wax Poetics, making The Listeners Top 10 albums of 2014 and winning the official stamp of approval of Questlove, The Roots and their imprint Okayplayer Records who alongside Somethink Sounds released the album in September of that year.
Demand for their live show has seen EWH perform in 18 countries, appearing at festivals such as Glastonbury, Dour, Sonar, Sziget, SXSW, Gilles Peterson’s Worldwide, New York’s CMJ and The Roots Picnic.