‘6”², the first track of the imaginatively titled follow-up to debut EP1: EP2, opens with a mournful, reflective fuzz before breaking into a warm, ’80s inspired, synth-driven wonderland that’s complemented by looped harmony vocals singing nothing but vowels. A sparkling, off-beat track that finds clean guitars subtly providing melody, whilst the glitch elements of Three Trapped Tigers find themselves temporarily taking a back seat as this introduction soars dramatically through grey clouds like a victorious Maverick in an F-14 Tomcat.‘7”² is altogether more familiar territory for the Tigers and the Tomcat’s fuselage is broken apart by pummelling, industrial, filtered drums that hide a menacing monosynth. ‘7”² demonstrates that TTT are on their way to shedding Squarepusher’s ‘Big Loada’ skin that so ably protected them on EP1. Surging Led Zeppelin style riffs announce a change in time signature and the group segue from the dramatic to the melodramatic as they begin to waft gentle guitar harmonics at the recording desk. TTT’s strength come from their complex arrangements which are driven by an incomprehensibly intuitive groove. Now with guitarist Matt Calvert on production duties, EP2 benefits greatly from a vastly improved sound.Set to present the greatest challenge to the listener, ‘8”² is all squealing feedback, 303 squeak, mangled artificial harmonics augmented by manic drums: the musical heartbeat of a robot on amphetamine. Rewind, close the eyes and let the sounds pound. Soon, the chaos becomes robust, a groove locks and as the Vernon Reid guitar riffage climaxes, the song blows out like a candle caught in the eye of a fantasy hurricane.The inescapable influence of Aphex Twin is at work with the mellifluous, sorrowful and dynamic ‘9”². Reminiscent of The Romance Of Young Tigers who seek crescendo at every opportunity, ‘9’s impending dissonance is unexpected, ending abruptly with the airy harp-like piano it began with.EP2 is simply better than EP1, which, if you’ve heard EP1, signifies a somewhat speedy growth. To paraphrase the Wu Tang Clan: “Three Trapped Tigers aint nuthing ta fuck wit!”Three Trapped Tigers on Myspace