UPFRONTBEATS

zAr zAr is a London born artist who has a rough and ready style with a love of acid, breaks and Windy City beats. His raw analogue sounds have taken him to key clubs all round Europe and now he runs his own Quite Nice Actually label, which he kicks off here with two top originals and remixes from dance music aficionados The Mekanism and Ben Sterling.

Opener Consistency is a nice wonky groove with elastic kicks. It’s muscular and punchy and is a slick house sound that bubbles with character. The always on form Frenchman The Mekanism then remixes it into a more trippy and late night jam with nice ripples of bass and soulful vocal stabs.

Monsieur Reefer is the next original and this one picks up the pace, with high speed drums and sleek hits all running through with some emotive pads straight from Detroit. Ben Sterling’s 3am mix is rippled with subtle acid, as the heavy drums march on and take you deep down a late night rabbit hole.

This is a fantastic start to the new label and one defo to keep on eye on.