Make Haste

What’s in the water in Dundas ON? The hometown of Caribou‘s Dan Snaith has now produced another electronic artist, TK Dallman, aka Make Haste.

His latest EP, Unrest, is a slick, sleek, snythpop delight harking back to days when masters and servants and thieves like us spun us right ’round in gymnasiums-turned-nightclubs. Friends Lesley Davies (of Bad Passion), Zoe Sky Jordan and Jason Turriff from Toronto band Blackbelt, aid and abet Dallman’s exploration of abused power, failed love, and damaged emotions.

Unrest is available as a download from Bandcamp or as a limited edition physical cassette. Make Haste marked the EP’s release with a show at the Silver Dollar Room in Toronto earlier this month, and future live dates are in the works. - Quick Before It Metls

Oooooh, this is exciting, a new Make Haste EP! We are long-time fans of the uptempo Toronto indie electropop producer, but as much as we loved his previous work, he’s never sounded better than on “Get Back Home.” This is epic pop music, with guest singers Melissa Ella Warren and Lesley Davies delivering truly incredible performances.
The whole EP is a must-hear. Have a listen, and download it from Bandcamp. The Unrest release party takes place August 9 in Toronto. - Silent Shout

Make Haste is the lo-fi, dance-driven synth pop moniker for T.K. Dallman, a Dundas, Ontario musician and producer who dropped his self-titled, debut EP in March. The songs on the EP focus on the deterioration of relationships and the heartache that comes along with such human drama. While Make Haste is only a year old, Dallman already shows great potential as an electro-pop force to be reckoned with in Canada, as well as in the States. Like so many under-the-radar artists, he simply needs more exposure. From that point on, it’s only a matter of time before a buzz is built around his music.

From the aggressive, haunting opening track, “Easier,” to the hazy, end-of-summer anthem, “In A Daze” (featuring Lesley Davies of Bad Passion) to the dance beats and shimmering synths of “Should Have Left,” Dallman taps into a number of his personal musical influences, from Crystal Castles, Sufjan Stevens, Justice, Elliott Smith, James Blake, Junior Boys and Passion Pit, in addition to the more ambient sounds of Evenings and west coast producer Teen Daze. As the engine behind Make Haste, Dallman has previously opened for artists like Sexy Merlin, Reptile Youth, and Vimes.

Dallman gave a very honest answer to the question – ‘what is indie rock?’ – that we ask all artists on the IRC submission form. “Indie rock means a bunch of different things to different people. Even my definition of it changes. Sorry.” No reason to be sorry, dude, that’s about as close to our own view of ‘what is indie rock’ that we’ve received since we started asking the question last year. - Indie Rock Cafe

The first striking thing about Make Haste’s new EP is the portrait on the cover. It’s too bad for Joseph Bloore that re-taking unflattering photos was more challenging in 1850! The look of angry disgust on his face works comically well with the title – Unrest – which also reflects the restless heart of this set of six songs.

Musically, though, this is classic synth pop with a heavy side. Distorted and filtered vocals, magical beats, textures everywhere. Crackling noises, ornamental bleeps, grand choruses.

A high point is “Get Back Home”, the story of a break up told with two different and conflicting versions of the story. She thinks he was resentful, making up stories. He thinks she is living in a fantasy and was unfaithful. It all adds up to a dramatic back-and-forth as both parties realize they need to focus on getting back to a comfortable state, becoming themselves again apart.

There’s some great vocal collaboration all throughout the EP, outsourcing vocals from singers like Zoe Sky Jordan and Lesley Davies, though the constant filtered presence of Make Haste/TK Dallman is powerful and emotional enough to pull off the unhappy subject matter of the lyrics. And unhappy it is: realizing you should have left a relationship a long time ago, being caught in a web of your own lies, and being resentful of someone’s advantage are all situations explored.

It’s exciting to see a significant release from the Toronto-based artist – do you remember when he played our Crosswires show last summer? – and at its core, Unrest achieves the same thing that the live show does: an impressive amount of dancing.

Top Tracks: “Get Back Home”, “Stakes”

Rating: Strong Hoot (Good) - Grayowl Point

If you’re a fan of CHVRCHES, you may dig Make Haste’s new EP Unrest, particularly “Get Back Home” which features additional vocals from Melissa Ella Warren. That isn’t to say the rest of the album should be ignored, this is all lovely ear candy here. They play The Silver Dollar next Saturday, August 9th. - Ride the Tempo