- Nearly every year, Josh Wink releases a new track, as if gently reminding us that he's still around. It's usually dependable, workhorse stuff, made from a tried-and-tested recipe of vocal samples, acid lines and dramatic breakdowns. "Shoelaces" sticks to the formula, but it colours outside the lines a little. Not only does it come out through Boysnoize Records instead of Wink's Ovum label, but it's unusually whimsical, channeling the spirit of his early work more than even-keeled tracks like last year's "Denial." "Shoelaces" is Wink's best track in recent memory.
The original and the "Acid Instrumental" find the producer at full tilt. The acid line sputters and sprays wildly, while the drums switch patterns and pound indiscriminately, like a toddler having a temper tantrum. (The pitched-down vocal sample, however, is somewhat regrettable.) Take out the acid line and the glitzy arpeggio grounding "Shoelaces" and it almost sounds like a Hessle Audio track. That's why the stripped-back "Instrumental" unexpectedly steals the spotlight. By removing the 303 and letting the drums speak for themselves, you can hear what an inspired and fun tune "Shoelaces" is at its core.
Truncate provides a sharp makeover, giving the track an unfussy techno pulse that starts, stops and reinforces in all the right places. A nearly nine-minute effort by Mono Junk gets trippy and unsheathes the track's brutal acid line. Both are solid enough remixes that turn a livewire jam into something more straight-laced, which only underlines the mercurial brilliance of "Shoelaces."
Tracklist01. Shoelaces
02. Shoelaces (Acid Instrumental)
03. Shoelaces (Truncate Remix)
04. Shoelaces (Mono Junk Remix)
05. Shoelaces (Instrumental)