Undertow finds subtle variations and shifting emotional temperatures within tightly wound rhythmic frameworks; elsewhere, the grooves occasionally coast on their own momentum, mistaking persistence for progression.
Offering four rhythmically obsessive workouts
Rinse FM favorites Hessle Audio have spent two decades pushing forward-facing bass music and garage-adjacent inner-city funk, consistently balancing dancefloor utility with a taste for the unconventional. Arthur Hnatek’s Undertow EP. four-tracker sits comfortably within that lineage, offering four rhythmically obsessive workouts whose physical immediacy occasionally outstrips their compositional ambition.
“Undertow” establishes the template with muscular propulsion and twisted, funk-leaning synth work that recalls Hnatek’s explorations alongside Barker. There’s an appealing tension between the tightly wound percussion and more oblique melodic gestures, giving the groove a wiry, unsettled character. Yet the synth work hints at possibilities the arrangement never fully explores, leaving the track reliant on rhythmic insistence where greater development might have made it genuinely distinctive.
“Etch” flexes its percussive muscle through furious cowbell patterns and cloudy, four-AM bass rolls, generating the sort of febrile momentum that makes immediate sense on a packed dancefloor. Hnatek’s control of rhythmic detail is impressive, with each element contributing to the track’s relentless forward motion. It feels entirely hypnotic gradually increasing it’s risk factor and becoming multi-dimensional. Its effectiveness is undeniable; its capacity to surprise is electrifying.
“Sunder” veers into carnival-inspired jump-up funk, its dirty, looping groove propelled by another formidable display of rhythmic control. There’s a raw, almost mischievous energy here, and the repetition gives the track an infectious physicality that should translate particularly well in a club. However, the loop’s considerable appeal also becomes its limitation, with little structural disruption to justify its extended stay. A more adventurous turn might have transformed an enjoyable workout into something genuinely unpredictable.
A more satisfying dimension ::
“Loom” provides the EP’s most persuasive change of temperature, retaining Hnatek’s percussive intricacy while moving towards a more soulful, spacious register. The rhythmic showmanship feels less like an end in itself here, instead allowing the surrounding atmosphere room to breathe. It’s a welcome demonstration of emotional range, although its relative restraint makes one wonder why comparable nuance is less evident elsewhere. Still, the track’s balance of precision and feeling gives the EP a more satisfying dimension than relentless dancefloor functionality alone could provide.
Hnatek’s rhythmic instincts are rarely in doubt, but technical precision and physical impact can only carry a track so far before the question of what happens next becomes unavoidable. At its best, this EP finds subtle variations and shifting emotional temperatures within tightly wound rhythmic frameworks; elsewhere, the grooves occasionally coast on their own momentum, mistaking persistence for progression. There’s a fine line between hypnotic repetition and diminishing returns, between a loop that deepens with every rotation and one that simply continues to exist. “Loom” suggests Hnatek has more than percussive ingenuity in his arsenal. The challenge is to let that broader musical imagination disrupt the machinery as often as it serves it.
Undertow is available on Hessle Audio.
