- Unlike some of his Aus Music peers, Youandewan has never had a big moment. Since 2009, the Yorkshire-raised, Berlin-based Scot has slowly amassed a solid discography and a fanbase that appreciates his understated style. For his debut album, though, he steps things up. It's not that There Is No Right Time has the sort of bangers that made labelmates Dusky and Huxley festival giants. It's more that Ewan Smith conjures deeper emotions in lieu of his typically coy, Smallville-esque house cuts. The result is the best Aus Music album in recent memory.
This is partially because of the context in which Smith wrote the music. New to Berlin in the depths of a bleak winter, he was feeling lonely and broken. Tracks like "Time To Leave (Can't Mix)" successfully translate those feelings: the drums trudge heavily, the minor chords lilt and everything seems on the edge of breaking down. The wallowing never lasts too long, thankfully. Tracks like the warm "10405 (Alice)" bring cautious optimism, while "Waiting For L," with its lively drums, sounds like Smith shaking himself out of a slump. But the draped, drooping chords remain, constantly evoking a delicate, bluesy state of mind. The neon squiggles and tight drumming of "Be Good To Me, Poly" flicker with the same sad beauty as Radiohead's "Weird Fishes/Arpeggi." Like the rest of the album, the track's chords shimmer warmly but imperfectly. The way Smith subtly treats each sound adds layers of emotion.
After "Our Odyssey"'s smooth, cosmic bounce, There Is No Right Time jumps around stylistically. As a show of range, Smith touches on heavenly electro, pumping house, stomping Italo and swaggering MPC hip-hop. There's no denying the quality of these final tunes, but given how they digress from the rest of the album, they would have been better placed elsewhere. Despite the outliers, There Is No Right Time feels like an accomplishment from this understated producer.
Tracklist01. Have The Guts
02. Be Good To Me, Poly
03. Waiting For L
04. Time To Leave (Can't Mix)
05. 10405 (Alice)
06. Our Odyssey
07. Something Keeps Me Real Quiet
08. Left On Lucy feat. Huerta
09. Earnest Kelly
10. 4D Anxiety