Looming on the instrumental intro ‘Narrow The Way’ Ithaca leave no room to make assumptions. The track heaves and grows, haunting in echoes of drums that you can imagine calling the crowds out to move forwards into seamless jagged syncopated Weinman-esque riffs with ‘Ashes’. The track splits, following unimaginable paths before Djamila’s vocals fill quiet space before lyrics that will be chanted across venues up and down the country stomp across marching drums.
Ithaca’s pace never relents, the south Londoners continuing their rampant techy uprawr into ‘Burial’. With each track that comes in ‘Narrow The Way’ there comes more and more influences creeping in from an array of genres into this unknown iconic Ithaca sound that will have twitching bodies stopping and starting, wildly guessing what beat to throw their body into next. ‘Gæst’ then twangs on every violent string as a beefy onslaught of vocals guts the track. Behind guitars rile up in fits and starts pulling from unwinding into short, sweet, aggressive lunges.
Impelling you to listen to every element, take in every string and stick and consume every word is the closing track of the EP ‘Mercy’. The track impeccably closing ‘Narrow The Way’ with alluring talent and intriguing musicianship. An eminent EP that reflects when flair, power and craft come together seamlessly remarkable things can be achieved. For tracks like these so early on Ithaca are going to tear 2014 a new one.
