Pryor Stroud: An ADHD-addled, dubstep-driven mind spasm, “Dos Puertas” is suffused with inscrutable vocal stammers and split-second blips, muted rhymes and shooting-up-just-to-drop-down crescendoes. Travis Stewart — a.k.a Machinedrum — takes a decidedly maximalist approach compared to 2014’s atmospherically-conscious Vapor City Archives, yet still maintains the textural detail and rhythmic nuance that permeates much of his prior discography. At random intervals, the track seems to make 180-degree, whiplash-inducing turns. One motif will suddenly collapse into another; a front-and-center sound will slyly torque and stretch into a buried background element. But it’s the tempo that will really turn your head: over-caffeinated, fitful, and disarmingly propulsive, it seems to have no thought of stopping until Stewart pulls its plug. [7/10]
Emmanuel Elone: Lyrics about sex and drugs over a loud, dubstep beat full of predictable bass drops, what’s new? Seriously, though, “Dos Puertas” doesn’t even try to be original, with a dry, generic beat that barely meets the standard of what a good beat should be and lyrics depicting sex and smoking in the back of a car. This in itself isn’t necessarily bad, but Machinedrum and Kevin Hussein don’t even try to make it sound good, since the song is filled to the brim with unsatisfying beat drops, annoying vocals, and unmemorable songwriting. Honestly, they couldn’t have made a more generic, bland tune if they tried. [3/10]
Chris Ingalls: There’s a lot going on, from an insistent dance beat to wild, untamed synths and samplers — it’s basically a dance club banger, but the production is more adventurous than the genre is used to. It’s surprising that the track is only about three minutes; so much is crammed into that space that it could have easily been twice that. [7/10]
Chad Miller: There are a lot of cool effects in this song. The beginning is a little bit slow, but the middle is pretty nice. The song could use some more substance though. It also seems to be over-reliant on build ups used as transitions. [6/10]
SCORE: 5.75