[Contexterrior]

When choosing a name for your production alter ego it can be fun to take the piss. The playfulness of a good moniker is suited to a music as carefree as its characters, perhaps nowhere more so than within the world of electronic music. 2 Phat Cunts was a one-time pseudonym adopted by BT and Sasha for a late nineties breakbeat collab called “Ride,” while Mancunians Ben Davis, Dick Johnson and Kiwi house DJ Soane flew under the Troughman banner (it referred to a certain eccentric who liked to lay in wait in the city’s club urinals for someone to water him) for the track “La Sourcier.” French DJ and producer Shonky has been active for about four years, so carrying on the personality of one who is “of slightly dubious quality or performance” is somewhat of a brave move, especially if some of your output lives up to your namesake.

Such is the case with his latest for Contexterrior, a decidedly flaccid four tracker of samey, formulaic tech house that fails to light any fire of real inspiration or desire to remember them. The title track carries remnants of Shonky’s meeting with Robert Hood on his “Who Taught You Math?” remix, though “Chocotox” is a considerably malnourished comparison to that effort, its groove solid but ultimately forgettable. That said, it is one of the best of the four tracks on offer here. “Jazz” is immediately annoying after only two bars as you come to the realization the track’s title is going to be repeated often, though the boompty house rhythm and wobbly bass work proffer no such similarity to the advertised genre. “La Madone” is a whittled down version of something Valentino Kanzyani might have made for the Recycled Loops label around the beginning of the century, sounding just as dated with the brief clutches of material girl vocals and tribal, looped percussion. Like “Chocotox,” “Mama Green” has a firm foundation of groove but at its conclusion is again an undiscerning effort and overall leaves you wondering whether certain aliases are better suited to one-off projects, lest they end up fitting too snugly their own self-deprecating connotations, as Shonky finds here.