Ballan’s arrival on Alec Falconer’s SUNNY imprint feels less like a feature and more like a quiet inevitability. As the A1 of “Different Shapes / Eurocup Mess“, “Different Shapes” unfolds with the assurance of an artist fluent in motion – someone who understands that groove is not merely built, but guided.
The track opens on fractured, break-led rhythms that scatter light across the floor before gradually gathering weight. As the drums settle, a full-bodied House bassline emerges – warm, insistent, and deeply physical – grounding the track in a steady forward pull. A looping synth figure anchors the track with quiet insistence, as ripped vocal snippets and scratchy gestures surface briefly, adding depth instead of noise.
What elevates “Different Shapes” beyond pure function is its sense of contrast. In the break, soft pads stretch out into space, briefly dissolving the track’s rigidity into something more fluid and contemplative. There’s a distinct UKG inflection here – not overt, but felt in the swing and phrasing – before the groove reforms and presses on with renewed clarity.
True to Ballan’s wider catalogue, the track resists tidy categorisation. Techhouse’s rawness, Garage’s elasticity, and House’s emotional core are not stacked, but interwoven, creating a piece that feels alive rather than assembled. It’s playful without irony, powerful without excess.
As a continuation of SUNNY’s trajectory following Phill Prince’s “Playground Pleasure”, “Different Shapes” affirms the label’s commitment to club music that values character as much as impact. This is dancefloor architecture drawn in motion – shifting, elegant, and designed to endure long after the lights come up.
Words by Holger Breuer
Torture the Artist 