Browsing Tag

Downtempo House

Lofty gave a soul-spilling lecture in emotional momentum through the downtempo lustre in the debut single, Quiet Steps

Posted on 24 December 2025

LOFTY may have made his debut with the downtempo mix, Quiet Steps, but his entry into the UK electronica scene was anything but tentative. The emotionally lush track brings with it a tidal wave of pulsating reverberations of desire that runs deep into the most unsated corners of the soul.

If you can tear yourself away from the ethereal transcendence and the intersections of caustic bass that ripple through the sublimity in the downtempo house mix, you’ll lock into a confessional that reflects the vulnerability of anyone you could meet on the dancefloor – echoing isolation and abstraction from connection, Quiet Steps thrums with the pain of starting a new chapter with no clue how you will reach the end, but carrying the determination to write it all the same.

Finding the emotional cinematography within his instrumental textures, the UK-based producer made it clear from the opening release that he doesn’t approach sound from a shallow palette. Lofty stood up to the lectern and gave the ultimate lesson in how to gain emotional momentum by augmenting instrumental layers with the full range of human emotion.

It’s a luxe introduction that deserves to be acknowledged from the underground to the top of the electronica charts. It is enough to allow you to envisage Lofty commanding an emotionally adrenalised crowd on the prestigious UK festival circuit and far beyond.

Quiet Steps is now available on all major streaming platforms, including Spotify. 

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Carter C. Carter brought haunted romanticism to a bleeding-edge RnB debut

Posted on 19 November 2025

Carter C. Carter let the transcendence of downtempo house find its way into the contours of contemporary RnB through his debut shot-in-the-heart single, I Miss the Hurt; a melancholic meditation on how, sometimes, it isn’t always the recollection of the sweetest memories that sting the most, sometimes, it’s the ability to feel anything visceral at all.

Fans of Frank Ocean and the Weeknd will be instantly hooked on the wavy kaleidoscopic hues of the track, which oscillate around the independent singer-songwriter’s evocatively raw, effect-laden vocal lines as they tremble in vibrato and flawlessly soar above the mix, straight into playing a melody on your own heartstrings. If you were ever in doubt of the existence of diehard romanticism in the modern era, hit play and reconcile with how hearts still bleed rivers.

I Miss the Hurt is undoubtedly one of the strongest RnB debuts of the year. You’d probably have to have a stone-cold soul not to feel the weight of emotion in the tour de force created by W. Michael Faller, which serves as an all too affecting teaser of what’s to come in his upcoming debut LP.

I Miss the Hurt is now available on all major streaming platforms via this link. 

Review by Amelia Vandergast

The Manchester-based producer Tao Mitsu liberated his listeners with his transcendent mix, Just Let Go.

Posted on 20 August 2023
https://soundcloud.com/tao_mitsu/tao-mitsu-just-let-go

With textures and melodic progressions that go beyond immersive to offer aural escapism, when you’re enmeshed with the pulsating rhythms in the latest instrumental mix, Just Let Go, from the Manchester-based producer Tao Mitsu, space and time may as well cease to exist.

By starting with emotional impulses and constructing musical landscapes around them, each creation of Tao Mitsu is an evocative trip tinged with the full spectrum of human emotion rather than just riding euphoric waves. The fragments of melancholy within the groove and bass-driven ambient techno beats in Just Let Go capture the bittersweetness of loneliness, encompassing the primal pain of heartbreak and the first teasings of hope that appear on the periphery.

Just Let Go may not carry the definitive Manchester sound, but with the cover art depicting one of the cosy corners of the iconic Night & Day Café, Tao Mitsu succeeded in paying homage to the vibrant and eclectic music scene via his nostalgia-driven, transcendently liberating leftfield electronica anthem.

Just Let Go reached the airwaves on August 13th; stream it on SoundCloud.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Spotlight Feature: Alejandra sells sonic sanctuary in her ethereal RnB house single, the people look like flowers (at last)

Posted on 15 November 2022

Inspired by identity issues imposed by her Mexican-American heritage, the Atlanta, Georgia-blossoming artist, Alejandra is here to affirm that identity is a construct and prove the collective power in raising our individual vibrations.

Her third single, the people look like flowers (at last), dropped on November 11th to create a safe and sensuous space for her listeners to explore their identities while basking in the soul that radiates from the feat of ethereal house. After an almost ambient Avant-Garde intro, the lush layers kick into downbeat house grooves while Alejandra lays her arrestingly dreamy vocal lines over the mellifluous melodies that effortlessly transplant you into a more peaceful state of mind.

“This is the latest instalment in my genre-bending discography, which aims to bridge communities together through the perspectives of a bicultural lens. The song is a lush, ethereal house track that explores the interconnectedness of this world and the power that can be harnessed through raising individual vibration.

The song uplifts the listener in love and freedom by curating a dream world for people to experience the sensations of the divine forces circulating through their physical environments. The track infuses disco, soul house, chillwave, hip hop and RnB to deliver a meditative blend that invites the listener to dance, play, and breathe deeply.”

Her commitment to reversing polarity while exploring the complexities of identity with her already awe-inspiring body of work is a sure sign of even greater things to come from the socially aware icon in the making.

Listen to the people look like flowers (at last) on Spotify.

Follow Alejandra to stay up to date with her latest releases via Facebook and Instagram.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Dystopic downtempo house meets 60s psych in Timothy and the Apocalypse’s single, The Mindful Cherub.

Posted on 21 August 2021

Timothy and the Apocalypse has been melting minds with their darkly psychedelic revivalist take on downtempo house and acid jazz since making their debut with their album, Future So Bright.

The standout single on the debut album, The Mindful Cherub, is sure to entice anyone who recognises David Lynch as an exceptional electronica artist as well as an incredible filmmaker. There are plenty of odes to the cold psychedelic tones found in Pinky’s Dream, featuring Karen O; the tonally multifaceted track was written as a nod to 60’s Psyche escapism, and that’s exactly what it delivers.

There’s a fine line between ambient electronica and escapism electronica, the Mindful Cherub will transport you to a brand-new world.

The Mindful Cherub is now available to stream on Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergas

Bad Wolf peeks behind closed doors in his latest nu-disco single, ‘Curfew at the Disco’

Posted on 3 May 2021

While plenty of us sulked about the inaccessibility of dancefloors and lack of like-minded community, Philippines-based artist and producer Bad Wolf imagined what went on behind closed doors while creating his latest melodically tropic single, Curfew at the Disco.

After the release of his debut single, If I Can Make You Dance, in January 2021, he was scouted by MojoHeadz Records and inspired to release at least ten new singles in 2021. Based on Curfew at the Disco, we can expect plenty more soul-oozing DAW-created grooves from the artist who is quickly becoming renowned for painting with metropolitan strokes and with kaleidoscopically urban colour.

Curfew at the Disco unravels as a mix of euphoria-evoking nu-disco and roots deep techno that allows Bad Wolf to invite you into his imagination where you can explore the intimacy of the house parties which happened while dancefloors and venues gathered dust. The air of hedonist rebellion runs right through Curfew at the Disco, right next to the influence from indie dance and 80s Japanese City pop.

Curfew at the Disco officially released on May 3rd; you can check it out for yourselves via SoundCloud. Connect with Bad Wolf via Instagram.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

EDM Artist Guy Metter has made their debut with the experimentally bold single “Last Night”

Posted on 25 January 2020

With the spoken-word narrative which sits synergistically against the groove-deep beats in Guy Metter’s mesmerising Alt Electronica debut “Last Night (We Took Over a Jazz Club)” there was an intensity to the sound like we’d never heard before.

Your mind is split between wanting to follow the intricate and boldly experimental instrumental Jazz & Funk-soaked progressions and wanting to hear how the compelling narrative story ends. Neither of them disappointed.

The lyrics perfectly captured that all too familiar sense of guilt which follows hedonistic indulgence. With a sensual versing and just as much sensuality from the beats, Last Night is a single we’re definitely not going to forget in a hurry.

You can check out Guy Metter’s hypnotically masterful for yourselves by heading over to Spotify now.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Classact – Love: Melodic Experimental Electronica

Posted on 4 December 2019
https://youtu.be/V9a2cF6FIm4

Up and coming artist Classact released their latest serenely mellow mix “Love” on November 6th. Slapping a genre label on the single may prove to be somewhat of a challenge but slipping into the spacey ambience of the mix was made all too easy thanks to the production from Wavy Tre.

With nuanced Hip Hop vibes and lucid downtempo House tones, Love spills plenty of catharsis as the light and intricate beats wave through the melodies. The vocals on the mix find the perfect synergy with the electronic progressions, there may not be all too much in the way of lyrics, but Classact’s vocals still inject plenty of personable warmth into Love.

You can check out Classact’s latest mix Love for yourselves by heading over to YouTube now.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

OLD PUP – FANTASi: Ambiently Immersive Downtempo House

Posted on 2 December 2019
https://soundcloud.com/old-pup/fantasi-demo

Up and coming Electronica artist OLD PUP has recently dropped their latest EP “New Tricks” and shared with the airwaves a potent amount of aural serenity.

The perfect introduction to the artist and producer’s slightly Lo-Fi, infinitely cathartic style is the standout track “FANTASi” which unravels as a light, spacey, downtempo feat of instrumental Hip Hop and Ambient House.

If you’re looking for artists offering trippy lucid vibes to add to your playlists, you won’t go far wrong with the light, warm tones found in the multilayers of OLD PUP’s deftly smooth mixes. They may be fresh from their inception, but evidently, that hasn’t prevented them from putting out fresh stylistic mixes.

You can check out OLD PUP’s latest mix FANTASi for yourselves by heading over to SoundCloud now.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Illegal NoiZe – Inlimit: Ominously Danceable Instrumental EDM

Posted on 27 October 2019
https://open.spotify.com/track/1RIRbERieiLQ9hMOjwg08k

Illegal NoiZe (formerly known as DJZ) has recently dropped their atmospherically dark feat of EDM “Inlimit”. With a sound so polished it resonates as cinematic and rhythmic pulses which are caustically compelling, you get little choice in whether or not you get hooked into the sharp electronic track.

It’s not all too often we can say that Instrumental Electronica tracks offer any amount of distinctive appeal. But considering the fact that Inlimit is so ominously danceable, Illegal NoiZe won’t have all too much trouble re-establishing themselves.

The honesty, in the admission of their bootleg misadventure which saw DJZ’s name disappear from the internet makes Illegal NoiZe’s (and they’re incredibly apt name) mixes even more appealing.

You can check out Illegal NoiZe’s mix Inlimit for yourselves by heading over to Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast