Sam O.B. is a producer from New York, formerly known as Obey City before switching names in 2017. Over the years, he’s been part of the group Dave & Sam, and he’s collaborated with artists like Zebra Katz and Dawn Richard. He is also co-founder of the Astro Nautico record label. His last solo release came two years ago, when he released the single, “This Saturday.” Now he’s back with a new EP, Just a Slice.

Sometimes as an artist, it can be fun to pick a theme or concept for a project not because you have anything deep or personal to say about the subject matter, but just because it can be a fun jumping off point that can get the creative juices flowing. Case in point, Just a Slice is Sam O.B.’s pizza-themed dance music EP. Now, you’re not going to hear excessive references to ingredients or styles of pizza, and there certainly aren’t any samples of traditional Italian music, either. Instead, Sam O.B. is using the making, baking, and sharing of a pizza pie as a metaphor and outline to making house music. He’s starting with the dough, letting it proof and rise, adding some sauce, adding some cheese, and then slicing that baby up and passing it around. In house music terms, this isn’t that much of a stretch, since you always want to start with a solid foundation of groove, something hypnotic and pulsing that will get people moving their hips. Then you want to layer on some melodic elements, a chord change that is catchy, but not so simple that it will become boring after a couple of cycles. Then, you get to add in some extra flavor, maybe work in some key samples, some horns or vocals. Sam O.B. is doing all of that on Just a Slice, giving us four tracks that immediately get you moving, and then he keeps building and pushing the music forward. He always keeps it interesting, but never loses focus of that foundational groove. It’s a sweaty good time, perfect for a late night summer party.

Just a Slice is a solid dance EP from a veteran producer in Sam O.B. He’s been at this a minute, and he knows how to cook up some house music that hits the spot.