Travis Stewart, aka Machinedrum or one half of Sepalcure, has had one hell of a year. As well as producing music for the soundtrack to Black Swan, 2011 saw the release of Room(s), one of the most celebrated albums of that year. Once described as “the standard to which the next wave of imitators aspire”, Stewart is highly respected among aficionados of Intelligent Dance Music.

The EP opens in a kind of underwhelming way – “Take Good Care” is a bit Machine hum-drum as it chugs away like an engine warming up. Bouncing in with an infectiously bassy beat, title track “SXLND” is a record that has become more widely recognised as the backdrop for rising star Azealia Banks’ “NEEDSUMLUV”. Although it’s a great record in its own right, after hearing her version the original screams out for a vocal track over the top. “No Respect” pays its respects to 1980s house synth sounds over a dark growling bass; “Van Vogue” continues in the same fashion, throwing in some clicks, handclaps and startling dog barks for good measure, while final track “DDD” calms everything down with a rollicking beat reminiscent of Blawan’s “Getting Me Down”.

In SXLND, Stewart demonstrates yet again his masterful craft of blending heavy bass with delicate subtleties, making this an EP for dedicated home listeners or forming part of an energetic DJ set. He strips down elements, laying them bare, but still manages to produce strangely evocative and melodic tracks. Unfortunately this contribution fails to stand up to the anthemic “Alarmaa” and “Sacred Frequency”, but I suppose that’s the only downside to consistently bringing out great records.