When ATTLAS released his floating, cinematic remix of Deadmau5‘s “Aural Psynapse,” many listeners thought the moniker was just another alias of Joel Zimmerman’s — that is, until another legendary DJ, Pete Tong, revealed that ATTLAS was actually another Canadian producer by the name of Jeff Hartford. It’s just one side of the aesthetically eclectic mau5trap signee, who will release a new EP, Scene, on August 7.
The first listen, “Wastaga,” a viciously grimy barrage of drops, is a complete 180 from the six-song collection’s second single, “Beside.” Of the track’s yearning verses (courtesy of the Intergalactix’s Kristian Attard) and lilting Porter Robinson-esque synth melodies, Hartford says, “Beside is a tightrope walk of intimacy and exasperation, lessons learned, and bridges burned. The quiet reflection and self-investigation of the verses gives way to the size and volume of the chorus’s outcry. It invites the perspective that perhaps this isn’t a conversation between two people at all, maybe the frustration that ‘quit making this so hard’ is self-directed.” Listen here.
