First review on Tesselate from Deep Water Recordings.

Chin Chin are Frankie Binns, TC and Chris Cousin (aka SofaLofa on AI records) and officially launch their Deep-Water dingy with these sublime offerings of wistful and intricate downbeat folk-tinged electronica. The debut long-player 'Shallow Dive', due in the new year on Deep-Water, is set to empty dance floors across the globe as listeners head for their sofas and flotation tanks to soak up the extremes of lo_tempo trickery it contains. Their sound nods at the likes of Four_tet and Matthew Herbert, but with an intimate acoustic tinge, garnered from years of playing live.

"Shallow Dive" is a beautifully ornate track from the very beginning. An acoustic guitar accompanied by a high tinkling piano develop the melody, as a gitchy sub audio development bursts into life, bringing the electronic angle to the front.
Simple and charming, bringing views of grassy hillsides in mid summer to mind, this is the perfect antidote to the robot enforced winter we are all in now (well uk anyway), so as I look out of the window to my right and see some workmen nailing up some tacky christmas decorations above the chinese over the road, my ears are in fact back in July, kicking it down the field. V cool stuff.

"Tuk Tuk" unleashes a machined beat, and a tiny legion of domino shaped robots into the city. These tiny always smiling maniacs plonk through the town rattling and tinking their transparent feet on the loose surface, on a controlled march to the nearest arcade. Power sources start to drain the further they walk, and stumbling and wobbling becomes the norm, as they give off heavy buzzes and broken plastic rumblings, that bounce off the concrete all over the joint.
Cool. "Casionova" is the soundtrack to a GPRS machine on a drunken drive through the marshmallow town of Marshmallow land. Powdery drumhits and location revealing pips smoothed on top of a bubbling harp like melody,only goes to emphasise the unfocused madness that this little computer has within his yellow plastic body.
The final track is a remix of Shallow Drive by Isan Romney, Hythe and Dymchurch.

"2ft deep ponds" is a very interesting trip into the world of Chin Chin. Very orchestral and atmospheric throughout, and with elements of video game stylings, it kept me interested throughout.

Check it

Sam