Simian Mobile Disco – 'Unpatterns' (album stream)

Jas Shaw and James Ford have been shimmying their way through the changing eras of electronic music since 2005. Their initial take on dance saw indie-esque vocalists involved on the majority of their tunes including Beth Ditto, Alexis Taylor of Hot Chip and Gruff Rhys. Combine this with a few great videos of young (and old) girls getting a bit drunk and kissing and you’ve got a decent recipe for fun and 12A-rated dance music.

Fast forward to 14th May 2012 and the two London producers and DJs’ new work shows they have grown out of electro and turned to minimal techno and house. The only (heavily manipulated) vocals heard throughout ‘Unpatterns’ are on opener ‘I Waited For You’, ‘Put Your Hands Together’ and the ‘Your Love Ain’t Fair’ lyric on the track of the same name. ‘Seraphim’, the first single out, balances soothing synth-work and also a few repeated vocals, exhibiting the duo’s new-found musical adulthood very nicely. Unlike the earlier SMD work, ‘Unpatterns’ does feel like its intelligent production wants to be appreciated in a more adult environment than where it lived back in the noughties.