Koven - wHERE the rhythm goes

When did Koven get this heavy? “wHERE the rhythm goes” still has Katie Boyle’s crystal-clear vocal front and centre, but the drop underneath has more teeth than the melodic-dnb tag usually allows. The verses float, all airy pads and restraint, and then the low end comes in genuinely nasty, a growl that would sit fine on a dubstep track slowed down. That contrast is the whole appeal, the prettiness making the ugliness hit harder and the reverse too. Koven have always lived in that pocket where dnb meets a festival main stage, and I’ve sometimes found them a shade too polite. Not here. The chaotic capitalisation of the title feels like a hint that this is them roughing up their own formula on purpose. Boyle sells the hook without oversinging it, which is rarer than it should be in a genre that loves a belted chorus. Three listens deep and the switch from float to snarl still catches me off guard.

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