The second release from Chateau Chepere is possibly the most anti-commercial record you’ll find in the racks this month: a double 12″ release of a four track EP — just one track per side. But those tracks come from STL, a veteran producer known for a gigantic cache of subversive techno and house tracks on Something Records and that makes the eccentricities here par for the course. Partial Light was released in late June, there are still copies on sale and it shames us that this is the case because records as inventive and unique as this do not come around that often.
Partial Light is a phenomenal EP, full of dynamic tracks that move in ways that you least expect. “Fly Fly” is deeply submersive and a little subversive. Chords eroded like desert arches loop with a hypnotic intensity for 11 minutes. You could tag a genre to most of these tracks but they shift too fast and swing too broadly to stand fixed on any platform. “Eargrind” has a bounce and a light but addicting melody. The EP gets a gravity boost on the next disc with “Light Up,” music made for the rave of your dreams. This brought to mind a slinkier, more sinister take on Scott Hardkiss’ “The Phoenix” with a more sophisticated bassline nod.
All of STL’s witchy powers come together at the end on “Unlike Dislike,” which starts off with a liquidy bass that unnerves you a bit through repetition. And you think it’s going to be a noodling record like that, peacocking and admiring itself, and it’s interesting enough but STL flicks all the switches in the cockpit and the nose dives down and transforms into a stomping alien funk jam.
STL: Partial Light (Chateau Chepere / 2 x 12″ Vinyl)
A1. STL: “Fly Fly” (11:01)
B1. STL: “Eargrind” (7:51)
C1. STL: “Light Up” (7:58)
D1. STL: “Unlike Dislike” (9:31)
⚪️ Disclosure Statement: This record was submitted as a promo.
