Fresh from their debut release – the unadulterated vintage house celebration Acid Dreams EP by Hitsafe – intriguing young imprint Shaddock now prepares to take a sharp left-hand with the pensive tones of Spanish talent Pilas. A gothic tale of pestilence opens “Burros”, a curious mid-tempo beast with a nervous disposition and the desire to unsettle. Fluttering voices, skittering drums and juddering pulses characterise the track’s shape-shifting rhythms, anchored only a 3-note bass arpeggio and recurring submarine pings. Faraway percussion moves swiftly in double time, and the faintest spectre of wavering chords retains the track’s dreamlike state, keeping it aloft and restless in flight. Kassem Mosse can do no wrong, and continues his hot streak here with a stunning slow-mo refit. As with all of Mosse’s best work there is no easy pay-off, just a simmering half time shuffle: he slows the bass and tempo but raises the temperature slowly and steadily, creating a steamy tropical fug with organic percussive sounds and snaky shimmers. B-side cut “Without You” simultaneously hushes and rushes, with urgent whispers and knife’s edge strings. This floor-driven house number emerges from gusts of crowd noises and cascades of gleaming harps, charging forwards through layered loops, and erupting at its peak into neon cosmic synths. by “Monologue” moves within more recognisable house tropes, but its malleable bassline and chorus of breath sounds and snatched words ensure that it stands out as a prime example of sleek deep-tech-house.