Good news last week for Porter Robinson fans as he released the first EP under his new alias Virtual Self. The first live performance of said EP will take place tomorrow 8th December and rumours it may stream across the Internet.

Let’s take a quick look at the EP itself in preparation.

The American EDM producer takes us in an ‘interesting’ new direction offering up 5 tracks which attempt to marry several disparate electronic styles with mixed results.

The opening track ‘Particle Arts’ welcomes Porter fans with a familiar sound, a simple piano melody and female narrator asking them to ‘remember?‘ before turning all expectations on their head with happy hardcore style drums, break-beat fills and techno synth lines. The first drop teaches us to expect the unexpected, from then on we journey with him through an unfamiliar landscape teased with moments of nostalgia throughout.

The second track ‘Ghost Voices’ is by far the most easily accessible and club ready track on the EP. Taking inspiration from 90’s house the track has a similar feel to Faithless’ Insomnia. The track opens with a haunting bell like synth then a funky house beat, the track racks tension with a techno arp and female vocal hook. After the first drop the beat remains minimal and allows the haunting bells nurture a cold atmosphere, second time around additional layers of percussion and orchestral pads create a sense of movement. Although no break-beats feature in this song their influence can be felt in the swing of the track which gives it that classic 90’s feel.

The third track ‘Key’ is comparatively warm and uplifting, and has a the familiar anthemic and cinematic qualities Porter has become known for. Elements of the track have their own sense of personality; The main riff playfully skips while a 909 kick bounces along side, the ‘Language’ style piano a familiar narrator and it becomes easy to imagine them as a group of friends on an adventure. The track builds tension with use of several clever production techniques such as pitched build ups and a key change, but the most impressive moment on the track is when the kick drum slows down like a heart beat only to speed up to sound like a stuttering machine gun.

The EP then takes a change in direction with the final two tracks being more D’nB influenced. ‘A.i.ngel (Become God)’ seems to nod at 90’s IDM and some moments could be mistaken for Aphex Twin or Squarepusher. The ultimate track ‘EON BREAK’ seems to tie together the various themes of the EP with limited success. The technical elements (the rave synths, the break beats and the frantic kicks) of the track are knitted together to create a tapestry that lacks any charm or character; brief shimmers of beauty that appear in the earlier half of the EP seem to miss the final curtain call.

Virtual Self is set to polarise Porter’s fan base and is likely to lose him as many followers as it may gain. Elements of the EP will certainly appeal to old fans as he seems to bring certain characteristics from each of his previous incarnations; but the attitude of Spitfire in my opinion tends to overpower the charm of Worlds or the pure euphoria of Language.

David Gibb