council by La La

Scottish force of nature La La lands on Rhythm Section INTL with her first EP for the London imprint: “council”.
Having cut her teeth as a resident of iconic Scottish institutions FLY Edinburgh and Sub Club Glasgow for years, La La - real name Lauren Andrew - emerged onto the international scene at the tail end of the 2010’s. Forged by the fire of the unbeatable Scottish scene that gave rise to Jackmaster, Ewan McVicar, Optimo and Dennis Sulta, La La used the downtime afforded in the pandemic to hone her craft as a producer, dialling in her songwriting and honing her production techniques to find her own sound.
The time burrowed away in the studio paid off, crystallising in this razor-sharp EP, sitting in the sweet spot between Hard Groove & Peak Time Techno.
Over 4 tracks we are treated to a masterclass in driving, percussive club music: from the playful tension in“ against them” to the relentless drive of “nod to letting go” the tracks are peppered with playful breakdowns reminiscent of Ricardo Villalobos at his most groovy. Title track “council” takes a solid house groove, a thunderous 909 kick and goes to town. It’s utilitarian, confident and powerful in its execution: it’s grade A 100% pure dance floor weaponry.
The Final track, touch me is a real mix of contemporary club sounds: a layered 1 bar loop that wouldn’t feel out of place on the latest Leod release is paired with pitched down vocals evocative of post dubstep. Just when we think we’ve figured it out, deep house synth stabs, piano chords and sexy vocals join the melee in a way that could sound cacophonous but instead sits together at perfect counterpoint. La La has proven to have an almighty knack for balancing disparate elements and influences into a harmonious whole and it’s clear to anyone who listens that she’s found her voice and is having fun with it.