Jasper James - House It Up EP [Chiwax]

Since his debut on Optimo Trax 11 years ago, Jasper James has racked up releases on some pretty impressive labels, including Steel City Dance Discs, ESP Institute and, most recently, NO ART. Here the Glasgow producer adds another admired imprint to his resume, Chiwax, with an EP that showcases the depth and variety of his house influences.

He kicks things off with "No Metronome", a chunky, dusty, and drum-machine-percussion-laden deep house cut that reminded us a little of the great Kerri Chandler, before moving on to the retro-futuristic-feeling Chicago jack track that is "House It Up". On the flip, "Mission 770" is a hypnotic, slightly dubby peak-time deep house piece, while "Do You Play House" sounds like "French Kiss"-era Lil Louis fused with the sweaty energy of Danny Tenaglia and Junior Vasquez productions back in the Sound Factory days.