Even leaving aside that it's produced by Fingaprint's production partner, it shouldn't surprise that "Domino Effect" feels like a sister track to "Everybody": with its sexy female vocal and slithery synth melodies it ventures into similar territory of slick electroid vocal house. Marvelously so. Less rhythmically dense than "Everybody", "Domino Effect" is nonetheless the better of the two, its shimmering synth chords and lethargic, spacey groove creating a totally otherworldly vibe, especially when emerging from other funky tunes in the mix.
In contrast to "Everybody", the groove here is deceptively simple, a spare but gorgeously textured drum pattern pivoting fitfully around a single note bass boom, while overhead a succession of increasingly frail but springy and moist keyboard vamps bounce and twirl. Hardly bothering to differentiate itself from a straight 4X4 groove, nonetheless the track's rhythm sounds thoroughly distinct and memorable; I often find it circling around my head. In this, and in the tune's brooding eeriness, I'm reminded of Adamski's "Killer": there's that same sense of the groove being almost pregnant and weighed down by its own unsettling portentousness.
One thing that funky does which hitherto was almost lost to history is bring back the possibility of populist vocal house where the beat itself tells a story. We are used to this in R&B and rap of course, and we are used to magnificent house-pop in all eras, but what we no longer even think to expect is house-pop with an arresting, mnemonic drum pattern that itself captures and communicates much of the vibe of the song. "Killer" had this, indeed belonged to an era when such things were expected. Of course the other place this understanding has resurfaced is in R&B itself, where the revitalised popularity of the 4X4 beat has made the better producers think harder about how to squeeze every last drop of nuance out of relatively uniform grooves. Not surprisingly, "Domino Effect" also reminds me of such voluptuous kickdrum-epics as Electrik Red's "We Fuck You". If funky ever does cross over in the way that 2-step did, it's unlikely to be with driving housey vibe of tunes like "Do You Mind" or Wookie & Ny's "Falling" (as fine as both are); conversely, I could see this kind of torpid, expressive languor working a treat.
Also I can't go past the fabulous self-diagnosing lyrics here: "Psychedelic futuristic noise is playing in the background... You had my from the very start... Now it's time that I surrender... Something in my heart.... Just went click. Click. Click...." (cue drums)
