8/10
There's something wonderfully unforced about PARTICLS' debut EP. The London six-piece have conjured a sound that refuses easy categorisation – part sun-dappled folk reverie, part sweaty dancefloor communion, all filtered through a distinctly 70s-tinted lens.
The production itself tells a story: initial recordings captured aboard the boat studio Lightship 95 were later pulled apart and reassembled at Mashrooms Studios, resulting in textures that feel both organic and cunningly constructed. "Coke Float" opens proceedings with shimmering strings and stacked vocals, while "Parasite" delivers the kind of bass-heavy funk workout that justifies the band's disco credentials entirely.
But it's "Bullet Train (Frida)" – a tribute to Frida Kahlo – where PARTICLS really hit their stride. Layers of strings weave through glitching electronics and folk instrumentation, creating something genuinely affecting, a track that pulses with the same defiant vitality as its subject.
As the band put it: "The songs reflect who the six of us are alone, the winding paths that led us here, and the pulse of our shared ecstasy, found often, though not always, on the dance floor."
That sense of multiple personalities finding common ground is what elevates 'Every Now & Then' beyond mere revivalism. PARTICLS aren't recreating the past – they're ransacking it for parts, building something that feels immediate and alive. The result is an EP that works equally well as background music for your next dinner party or the soundtrack to your own euphoric moment of release.
Sophisticated without being stuffy, playful without losing depth. A debut that announces PARTICLS as a band worth watching.
Stream the full collection below
