Johnny Mikes first caught our attention with his cross-pollination of genres and time periods behind the decks. His performances at Crèche, The CAMP and Lo*Kee have shown him to have the ability to inject flair and personality into every corner of club music. It was only when we first heard him in the studio that we realised that he has the same skills when it comes to production too, so we did the honourable thing and signed him up for an EP on Lower East straight away. As we expected, the resulting ‘Defining Horizons’ is a collection of three inventive tracks that defy categorisation and bring charisma onto the dancefloor. ‘Hurting Me’ is a skipping slice of electro-boogie with a mind of its own. Starting out as a stripped down and melodic deep house cut, the track morphs into a high paced and chunky club workout. Aimed squarely at the dancefloor but with classic vocal edits offering sensitivity, this has all the energy and power to fuel the fires all night long. ‘Butterfly’ is less intense, presenting a more laid back, funk-edged house strut. Simple melodies roll out over a dense bottom end of deep bass and punchy drums. The chopped vocals add a playful sense of funk, creating a real party vibe throughout the track. Johnny then returns to his integration of retro and contemporary on ‘Broken Hearts’ fusing an 80s aesthetic with an emotive, deep house sound to great effect. Deft use of classy vocals provides an unhealthily catchy hook as jangling melodies attach the passion. Rolling bass, crisp beats and shuffling percussion ensure this is capable of keeping the floor moving too. Referencing the past to create the future, Johnny Mikes has delivered us a cracking EP that is both versatile and forward thinking. We’ll be dropping this on March 12th so get ready to be introduced to the shinning talent that is Johnny Mikes.