Keepsakes – Modern Anxious Vernacular [Haven]

For Haven’s sixth release in their main series co-head Keepsakes returns to the label with his first EP of 2019 and a new, slower direction for his sound. Following on from a busy touring schedule in the previous year and well received EPs on Haven, ‘Modern Anxious Vernacular’ takes a different approach to Keepsakes’ crunchy and vigorous tones, opting to explore slower tempos while maintaining his signature character in an environment of ever increasing BPMs.

The A1 begins the EP with ‘Seep’, throwing mind-shattering kicks, eerie vocal atmospheres and shuffling hi-hats at the listener before striking with a hectic staccato synth line at the halfway mark in a highly effective slow-mo banger. The BPMs decrease further still in the A2 on ‘State Of It’, which utilises effective, stepping drum programming and left-field hypnotising synth work to create a more unusual and melodic ambience. The B-side kicks off with ‘Hovel Of Scum’, delivering a dynamic percussion loop and crushing kick drum before introducing creepy synth lines and sampling work to reintroduce a ghostly mood. Finally, the EP is closed with ‘Selfies Are For The Weak’ (track you can listen to below), a slowed-down rolling broken-beat workout based around an ear-worm vocal sample and delay-heavy percussion, ending this new sonic expedition in Keepsakes’ musical world.

Release date: May 3rd, 2019.