Aside from a heightened sense of refinement, what always raises Zurich’s Lexx above the balearic pack is his deep roots in, and understanding of, black music. Witness his skill at finding just the correct reggae tune on his mixtapes. Or, looking a little closer, his hip-hop influences. Those who have heard him in the club will also know he’s a dab handing at whopping out the ‘proper house’. And it is to these last two genres that he turns his attention to on this three track EP of MPC jams. These are not soupy smudges of swing however - in truth they owe more to Pete Rocks ‘Petestrumentals’ LP albeit in a more fully developed form. The sound despite being rich, full and earthy is clear, considered and eloquently structured.

So to business. ‘Lunatic Dolphin’ is an upbeat aquatic bouncer replete with the song of some aquatic mammals who have strayed from the Atlantic into the Hudson perhaps? Eponymous ‘State of Resistance’ is a more meditative MPC thump with minor key chords and a subtle hip-hop sample. The groove is eased along with sweet smooth strings and shuffling percussion. ‘Duster’ is the most Kenny Dope of the pack with its snatched samples and whipcracking drums. By the time an evocative jazzy synth kicks in it’s GAME OVER!

So there it is, three tracks that sit in the hinterland between house and hip-hop for people who remember a time before the boundaries fell. Essential stuff for the club, the beach, the jeep and beyond.

State Of Resilience is out on the 12th of December.