Big Cat EP – Critical 280

As Ivy Lab wraps up its final experiments and dispatchs, Gove Kideo wastes no time reminding us of his solo pursuits. His first releases as Sabre in over ten years, it’s an exciting return to a unique and beguiling soundscape remains every bit as intriguing, cold and challenging as it did when he released his Wandering Journal album all those years ago. Bleak, abstract and refusing to follow traditional DJ-based form, there’s a powerful sense of industrial curiosity running throughout the EP as themes of IDM, jungle and powerful sound design all play key roles. ‘Brisket’ sets the tone and gives a wry nod to Krust in the process. Ridiculously skittish and prone to surprises, there’s a playfulness beneath the tension. Deeper into this historic EP things get more and more unapologetic; the foreboding prowls of ‘Big Cat’, the relentless shatters and smashes of ‘Ugly’ and feirce wobbles of ‘IBM’ all mark the return of one of the 2000s most innovative drum & bass artists… We’re really excited to hear what he does next.