- Look Like is a resident at Zukunft, a Zürich club with wide spaces, low ceilings and a stylish interior. If Look Like's Mistress debut represents how he plays there, Zukunft's dance floor needs lots of variety. Mistress 09 has supple warm-up tracks, a vocal number and, in "Control," a bleepy, Robert Armani-style banger. ("Unknown LQH," a digital-only track, seems like something you'd use to darken the mood.) An accomplished collage of house and techno styles, Mistress 09's charm is nested in small decisions and particular sounds. The off-key, off-beat chord on "Control" is one. The gravelly string loop on "You Dub" is another.
"TY84"'s vocal arrangement—daisy-chained shards of fluttering mezzo-soprano vowels—is Mistress 09's moody showstopper. But, again, it's the small things that set it apart. Bristly vinyl crackles coat "TY84" with tactile texture while a rhythmic accent, as thin and sharp as a hacksaw, slices back and forth. Mistress 09 excels during these subtle aggressions, though Look Like also handles "Shadows Groove"'s tender components with care. Threaded with glassy tones and smouldering pads, "Shadows Groove" is a deep house roller with a gossamer lining. On "You Dub," Look Like fashions a demure anthem in the vein of Midland's "Before We Leave." Much of Mistress 09 shows a gift for zesty contrasts, but the acid bassline's mild agitation seems slightly out of place. Even on a record where details carry so much weight, it's a forgivable blip on an otherwise promising debut.
トラックリストA1 Shadows Groove
A2 You Dub
B1 TY84
B2 Control
Digital: Unknown LQH