Phonox Nights was conceived as a collection of sonic secret weapons. A set of un-Shazam-able tunes to be played, by Andrew Weatherall, at the Brixton club which lends the album its name. Composed by Woodleigh Reseach Facility, aka Weatherall and Nina Walsh, the nine archival cuts constitute a cracking listen when taken, as originally intended, as an interconnecting, cohesive whole. However, singling them out allows their individuality to shine. While created on the same kit, and designed to be mixed together / interchangeable, there’s considerable diversity on display. 

The title track is an acidic anthem. The following Cryptic Numeric, an almost military, Sc-Fi march. Bone Pointer pits laser blasts against percolating programmed percussion. S&M whip cracks against a room-shaking digidub bass boom. Cowbell clonk against a weird winding melody. Taking on a more tribal tone as these elements cycle, collide, and overlap. Infidelity Of Time is a grumbling rumbling. A shot of slower, shuffling funk, constructed from hand claps, echoed congas, build-the-box rave bleeps, and a mad Moog-y B-line. Rocked by crashes of dubwise lightning and thunder, and what sound like great guitar arcs, mimicking the roar of an angry whale or elephant. These chunky, chugging electronics represent the record at its most “Balearic”. Church Of Burnt Offerings* features the tumbling, live tom toms of Nina’s late partner, Erick LeGrand, whose seemingly limitless legacy of bespoke loops, have been plundered and repurposed by WRF throughout their productions, effectively making him a third member of the group. Here, he comes on like a 1950s rock `n` rolla cutting loose, flexing his jazz muscle. Sandy Nelson insisting “Let There Be Drums”. The fastest thing on offer is the pace-ily pitched Wolves Don’t Chase Hope (They Chase Rabbits), where a whoosh of winds, from atop dub-disco mountain, powers clusters of spiralling, pirouetting keys. 

This is all most definitely groovy gear. For instance, there’s no denying Boots & The Pike’s sleazy glam stomp – a motorik meets Glitter Band beat that’s become a bit of WRF trademark. Present on plenty of Walsh and Weatherall’s commissioned remixes, it’s there again, driving One Part Disco, where it’s joined by by a siren-like synth and the warm, womb-like waves of an old school Chicago house bass-line, in what might be an homage to Master C&J’s classic Dub Love. However, the repetition and rhythms on the album are also deeply hypnotic, and so sorta meditative. A musical medicine then, that lets those partaking get lost in the dance, and also illustrates the ritual at the root of Weatherall and Sean Johnston’s legendary A Love From Outer Space parties. 

Gates To The South, for me, is one of the LP’s standouts. Its machine rhythms still march, but it seems somehow softer. It’s countering major and minor chords mixing emotions. Melancholy, and nostalgia balanced by the track’s forward momentum, and a strong sense of resolve. The vibe, grateful for the good times, but wise enough to realise that there’s no stopping the clock. No way back. Onwards and upwards we go. 

*The title here might come from a low, Dominican chant-like hum. 

Woodleigh Research Facility’s Phonox Nights is released this week on Facility 4.