With a little help from Eimas, MINY and James R. Basterd, Elevated Focusion dropped an interstellar genre-mash of a stormer with Trash. Unsettling from the outset, the dark, deeply rhythmic feat of sonic subversion draws you into a collision of metal, psych, industrial and hip-hop through droning, harbinger-like synthetics, before tribalistic beats punctuate their way into a frenetic rush.
Distorted guitars tear through the arrangement while perpetually chameleonic vocals project the lyrics in juxtaposing forms, each international collaborator bringing volition, intensity and flashes of harmony in their mother tongue, allowing Trash to grind the monocultural mould beneath its heel.
That kind of scope makes sense when you know the roots of the project. Raised in Queens, Elevated Focusion absorbed underground hip-hop, punk, jazz, rave culture and the cultural crosscurrents of NYC long before this phase took shape. Earlier instrumental work under the Jonny Rythmns name fed into the experimental cultivation here, before the project re-formed after the pandemic into something broader, sharper, and more collaborative. Since then, Elevated Focusion has pushed further into vocal-led releases with artists from across the globe, tying music and alternative fashion into one unruly vision.
We’re hardly shocked they had the nerve to pull off such a cross-continental triumph without cheapening the culture of a single contribution. This is trash you will never want to take off your playlists.
Trash is now available on all major streaming platforms. Find your preferred way to listen via the artist’s official website.
Review by Amelia Vandergast
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