Loco Dice - 7 Dunham Place

Loco Dice is a proclaimed ‘King of Ibiza’ and DJ extraordinaire whose productions have gone from strength to strength in recent times. With brilliant releases on Cadenza, OVUM, Cocoon and Richie Hawtin’s revered Minus firmly under his belt with a fantastic remix of Kevin Saunderson’s Bassline to boot – his debut LP 7 Dunham Place feels very much the culmination of a great deal of hard work and passion.

Released through Desolat, the label run by he and Martin Buttrich, 7 Dunham Place is an album as moody as it is uplifting and though it maintains a definite dance floor focus throughout, is possessed of a depth often absent in albums of its ilk. It’s textbook Loco Diceright through – terrace grooves, expertly crafted drums and plenty of dubbed out flourishes providing an infectious listening experience.

The graffiti adorned front door of the album cover is allegedly that of Dice’s apartment at 7 Dunham Place where the album was made. His keenness to make a point of homeliness is complimentary to the vibe of the music itself, which while it’s capable of bringing club audiences to their knees, is still pleasant enough to grace living rooms.

Perhaps most popular out of all the tracks on the album, Tight Laces sports an infectious rolling bass line that evokes a groove all on its own, but benefits greatly from the wood blocks and crunchy claps that scaffold it. Not alone in this sense, How Do I Know treads similar ground with yet more funk but less druggy groove.

It’s “Pimp Jackson is talking now!” and its Ricardo Villalobos-esque groove, stretched samples and telephone background vocals in call and response with the lead which really grab attention. The stuttering bursts of noise punctuate a particularly coked out club diatribe that brings pure dirt to open minded dance floors.

7 Dunham Place is an album which is, and will be, unavoidable.