Album review: Hervé – ‘Hallucinated Surf’

Hervé’s been one of those producers who’s been pushing the bass scene since day-dot – one only needs to listen to his various edits in his 2009 Ghetto Bass mixtape to realise how integral he’s been to the genre’s movement, and with the mainstream finally flocking to bass-led nights the country over, now’s the right time for that all-awaited follow-up to his 2014 collection Nothing Left Of Us.

Released as a double-project, Hallucinated Surf seemingly seeks to provide an ultimate club-head soundtrack; part 1 focusing on Hervé’s trembling dancefloor productions (a reunion with Zebra Katz on the excellent Tear The House Up just exemplifies modern-day club naughtiness), whilst the post-3am crew will lap up the collection’s second chapter as a backbed for those late-night/early-morning summer raves. More experimental in its offering, it’s this element of the album that’s delivering the most intrigue, and also pinpoints to the producer’s clear influence as an all-encompassing musician.

In fact, it’s the Hallucinated Surf title-track which is the total standout – a smooth head-nodder harking toward Cafe Del Mar vibes (a la Groove Armada ‘slash’ early-2000 Zero 7 beats), and sets the scene for idealism in similar vein to Maribou State’s breathtaking Portraits LP. An aura of tranquillity absolutely bestows, particularly on closer The River Sparkles, alongside the hazy Last Lovers Left Alive prelude.

However all this focus on ‘Part 2’ should by no means remove the might that is the club-focus of its former. Meridian Dan sets things alight with the EMF-sistered Do You Really Wanna Rave, whilst This Broken House contributes another example of Hervé pushing creativity – in fact, it’s this one that bridges the gap between the album’s varying sonics (though bizarrely nestled midway versus as a conclusion to the record’s opening set).

There’s more than a handful of tracks here that’ll appeal to the cool kids, whilst those who feel they’ve ‘been there, done that’, will still feel at home across the full body of work. Hervé’s delivered brilliance with this project; a nod to his early love of bass, alongside his understanding that the more ambient side of futuretronica is starting to heavily latch on.

Hallucinated Surf is out now – head over to Apple Music to stream straight away: