nCamargo & Impression – Part Of Me / Do It Right [Flight Pattern]

This week I am thrilled to present another brilliant liquid funk EP from the Flight Pattern camp, this time from nCamargo & Impression. I have covered Impression’s tasteful and restrained approach to the genre before, especially pointing out the use of live instrumentation and tension to create huge moments – his style matched with nCamargo’s beautiful use of visual narrative (throughout many genres of drum and bass) brought something really special into the drum and bass world. My initial listen through of these tracks had me somewhat stunned, from the mix to the variety in the composition and orchestration – I stopped what I was doing to sit properly and absorb it. There’s replayability, memorable switches, details, and so much variety packed into these tunes. Include the remix from Flight Pattern head honcho Random Movement, and this one is a classic in the liquid funk world.

One of the observations that has stuck with me this week as I was writing this review is the incredible fusion of styles that this duo has achieved in this collection. nCamargo’s most recent album, ‘One Man Journey’,  showcases some of the grooves and deeper sensibilities that define his catalog and have been supercharged in this collection; visionary pad and synth vistas, utilizing shuffle, light and dark themes, depth as well as levity, and a beautiful balance. Earlier this year, Impression released one of my favorite tracks of the year on an fx909 remix album: his approach to ‘Two Little Birds’ by fx909 was a huge breath of fresh air for me. The openness of it, the expansive feeling, and the incredible use of sub bass in just the right way really gives a classic and intimate feeling to the listener. I also think that these two offerings perfectly embody each artists style that was brought to ‘Part Of Me / Do It Right’. Listen to it all and you’ll see what I mean!

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I caught up with Eric Impression to talk about the connection between him and nCamargo leading up to this work, a bit about their process, and future plans. While they have never met, they have operated in similar circles and have known of each other’s music for over a decade, sending stuff back and forth and refreshing his crate for the Lab Sessions Bassdrive show. Finally this year they decided to open the door up to collaborate and within four months they finished five tunes. That’s a green flag buddy. You can totally hear the connection between the artists in this EP, and he’s told me that there are works signed to other huge labels coming soon. I don’t want to reveal exactly which ones but absolutely look out for this duo in the next few years – they’ve assured me they have plans to make more of this tasty material in the near future.

With that, let’s get into the track by track:

Part Of Me: The EP opens with an aqueous set of synths and pads that gently lead the listener into their drumkit, lacing the ghostly vox with some signature crispiness. The bassline in this track showcases a perfect synthesis between the two artists classic approach to bass in my opinion; the resonant and wobbly basslines of nCamargo sat deep in the mix, and the melodic soulfulness that Impression brings to bass that allows the deepest parts of the line truly shine. Once the floor drops out on this bassline you’ll see what I mean. I love the layering and orchestration in this opening piece and how they utilize all of their elements in different ways to let them shine through the mix. Really clean, dialed in sound.

Do It Right: The shuffle from the get-go is really telling of the groove to come, especially once you listen back. It’s snappy and has some really interesting funk and disco influence in the accompanying layers to the drums, creating a smooth and sultry jam. I love the way this track sways, creating vistas of a smoky dancefloor embrace amidst the movement. The overarching accompaniment along the top line melody is such an interesting and effective musical choice: the suspension allows the artists to dip in and out of tonality and resolution in a very agile way, which I would say is one of the signatures of this duo’s melodic content.

Part Of Me (Random Movement Remix): Taking the keys into the bassline, Random Movement provides his signature bounce and extended jazzy tonalities in this closing track. Utilizing a bit of a higher register accompaniment to the rolling approach he took, Random Movement creates a laidback groove that is fully thickened with big, warm, bass. The composition of this track is really interesting, using a longer first section to give way to a really bare midsection that allows the listener to really hear the main vocals – building back from that second drop is really satisfying to me, musically. At first, this remix pays a lot of homage to the original, but as I listened to it more and more it really stands alone in a lot of ways too, especially in how it surrounds the vocals.

As I mentioned earlier, this duo is not slowing down on their productions and release schedule. I look forward to their next offering, and look for a review of that whenever it may be! Thanks again to the Flight Pattern camp for pushing the boundaries of liquid funk while focusing so much on quality and consistency – for anyone reading do yourself a favor and checkout the flight pattern catalog. Purchase this amazing EP from nCamargo & Impression below.

Bandcamp link