Since Bristol-based producer Larry McCarthy, aka Bruce, began self-releasing his music, it has grown even more adventurous. Through his label Poorly Knit – which issues only on recycled materials – he has also embraced his fascination with the voice, first revealed through his 2023/2024 digital EPs and the tape album Not Ready for Love on Timedance. Following a 7-inch and 12-inch earlier this year, he now returns with a new EP full of dub techno, ambient and pop from the future.
The opening track »Golden Water Queen« enchants with melancholic vocals, soaring hymn-like and drenched in effects above an abstract rhythmic frame that merges ambient, dubstep and trip-hop. It’s followed by »The Hand« – more abstract, yet equally captivating. Here, a mesmerising ambient world unfolds, built on chord minimalism and looping woodwind-style synths. According to Bruce, the piece was born »from a desire to make a gentler and more insidious soundtrack to Denis Villeneuve’s Dune«. The closing track, »DHam’s Jam«, shifts between technoid propulsion, flashes of footwork and hints of dancehall dub from a not-so-distant future.
Hovering over it all is a ghostly sensuality, fed by warped vocal samples. Three pieces of experimental beauty that look far beyond the horizon — without breaking the china.
The Hand
