Days Gone By vinyl

Although the name Bob Moses would lead one to imagine a hairy, bearded dude making reggae-driven folk ballads in his attic, it actually represents a duo made up of Canadians Tom Howie and Jimmy Vallance. The pair moved from British Columbia down to NYC, and have since then been on a steady rise in terms of releases. They were first picked up by New York's Francis Harris, on his own Scissor and Thread imprint, and then they made a jump to the almighty Domino, the label they return to now with their debut LP. Days Gone By follows neatly from where the duo last left off; the album is a fine blend of melancholic, r&b-flavoured vocals and luscious house grooves. The opener "Like It Or Not" and "Talk" are both perfect examples of their deep and ethereal take on the genre, while "Before I Fall" shows their more musical side, a tune that doesn't rely on a 4/4 structure, and instead manages to work a slow hip-hop beat into the same pensive sway that drives most of their previous tracks. All in all, this is a deep and melancholic house album with plenty of twists and turns - it's a keeper!

Martin Haberland