Oli Furness – Four 4 The Floor

Label: Music Is LoveScore: 8/10 

Revival house sounds might be in vogue right now, but few are doing old-school house any true justice in their modern interpretation of the sound. The same, however, cannot be said for Oli Furness, the Manchester native and the owner of the emerging imprint, Music Is Love, a label that’s aligned with a party of the same name in Sankeys‘ Manchester outpost.

With four peak-time tracks on show on his latest, the aptly titled Four 4 The Floor EP ain’t subtle, although it does give punters plenty of bang for their buck. It’s ”Hunger” that gets us under way. Construed around a bouncy, elasticated bassline, it moves at a strident and fully-loaded pace that’ll go down a storm when the dancefloor needs an injection of energy.

Next up is ‘OverjaCk’, complete with its off-kilter samples and its gloriously pulverising bells. It’s an unlikely but harmonious marriage of sounds that ultimately works a treat, while its rave-influenced credentials are laid out bare for all to soak up. Dutch up-and-comers U Know The Drill give us a teasing insight into their own merits on their remix, as they rip up the rule book with a remix that’s notable for its heaving kitchen sink approach. It shouldn’t work, but it does – and in emphatic fashion too.

Seeing us out the back door is the sounds of ”Creepin in the Shadows”, a drum-laced track that’s full of zest and a catchy vocal that’s hard not to fully embrace. It’s gregarious and emphatic stuff, and we’re already looking forward to hearing what else Mr.Furness has in his locker.