No matter what your scale of time is, Brighton’s Guy Andrews is a very fresh producer. We heard one of his first tracks just over a year ago. His first official release won’t celebrate an anniversary until September. As such, even the most insatiable connoisseurs of dance music should find it impressive that Andrews closed out 2011 with a record for the enviable Hemlock imprint, and has kicked off his 2012 output by dropping a single via Hotflush. With a rap sheet like that, it’s imaginable that Andrews’ talent for tunemaking will only continue to grow with each release. His “The Wait” b/w “Hands in Mine” 12″ confirms the notion.

The young artist’s Hemlock release, “Shades” b/w “Textures,” maintained the penchant for eclectic percussion and skeletal arrangements that was apparent from his earliest productions, and while his two latest tunes certainly make use of those elements, they’ve been scaled back somewhat to make room for plenty of gaseous synth pads (a Hotflush prerequisite, it would seem). It suits Andrews well, too, and helps provide a nice counterpart to the harder edges of his previous work. From the start, “The Wait” hosts a milieu of filtered tones which build around a thumping kick before dropping out of earshot as a nasty, percussive synthline takes its place. It’s a stylish bait and switch that makes for a compelling intro, but the producer doesn’t rely on the trick as a crutch, and instead spends most of “The Wait” working out a mechanical groove that carries the weight of bassy groundswells and anthemic melodies. When it all congeals at the three-minute mark, a sizable chunk of subterranean techno is unearthed, one which could find a home in peak-hour DJ sets at summer festivals and warehouse parties alike.

Andrews’ trademarked percussion comes back stronger on “Hands in Mine,” which helps make for a distinctive b-side. With an arsenal of shakers, snares, wood blocks, clicks, clacks, bonks, hi-hats, and claps, the tunesmith fashions bouncy and clattering beats more in line with what he quickly made his name on last year. 808 booms fill out the low frequencies while more of the epitomal Hotflush pads swirl about in the peripherals. Unlike “The Wait,” this one ebbs less than it flows, resulting in five-plus minutes of darkly atmospheric soundsystem music with a steady dancefloor pulse. But despite the differences between the two cuts, the similarities—namely, each of the tempos and moods—become more apparent with repeated listens, which tends to blend the tracks together if you happen to not be listening on vinyl. So maybe Andrews’ Hotflush 12″ isn’t the most varied record in his fledgling repertoire, but it’s certainly his strongest yet.