EP Review: Sextile - '3'

LA based duo Sextile’s latest EP ‘3’ is a journey in genre nostalgia, its 5 tracks spanning across 70s punk, Gary Numan-esque synthwave and beyond to 90s techno beats. The result is what would happen if The Horrors got lost in Berghain. Dark swirling guitars and synths combine with thumping beats to create an industrial powerhouse of a record.

Growling synths cut to the chase on opener Disco, the strong techno influence bringing an immediate intensity. It’s a cold-hearted floor-filler, with siren-like distorted guitars and the deadpan refrain “No time for disco, they’ve got control”making it more apocalyptic than futuristic.

‘Drop You’ is at its core a classic punk tune, from its guitar chords to its rhythmic talk-sung vocals. There’s evidence of more contemporary influences too, particularly in the Girl Band-esque screaming guitars of recent single ‘Spun’. Meanwhile the dancefloor ready ‘Paradox’ calls to mind Confidence Man, albeit with a lot less whimsy.

Apparently the EP was heavily inspired by futurist writer Luigi Rossolo’s work ‘The Art Of Noises’, which makes a change from the old “I was inspired by Diana Ross cos my mum played her CD in the car”. This philosophical approach to sound accounts for the record’s simultaneous minimalism and fullness. It’ll make you dance, but it might also scare you a little bit.

Words by Hattie Long