Browsing Tag

electronic music

Head Says Leave, Heart Says Rave: melliejellie Put Y2K DnB in Emotional Overdrive with ‘i won’t wait 4 u’

As the electronica world mourns the loss of Kavinsky, independent artists with the same evocative pull as the iconic creator of the nocturnally lit single, Nightcall, are breaking ground; there’s considerable sonic rubble scattered across the airwaves after melliejellie dropped her DnB instant club classic, i won’t wait 4 u, from her EP, all about u.

Hyper-distorted vox land in every punch of Y2K club nostalgia, pushed into a chrome-edged blur that allows vulnerability to survive inside the digital abrasion. The breakbeat programming balances tightly clipped snare transients against restless kick placement, while disciplined sub bass preserves physical weight beneath the upper frequency onslaught. As the arrangement progresses, rhythmic subdivisions tighten and vocal fragments become percussive material, locking listeners into the emotive tumult of the timeless battle between head and heart, freedom and a chance of connection.

Whether i won’t wait 4 u meets you through headphones during sad girl hours or at club volume, the affecting rush of its hyperpop momentum lands with bruising impact. Her classical training reveals itself through structural control: tension accumulates with compositional precision before the release floods the stereo field. The Mozart crowd may reach for another cup of tea, yet melliejellie commands formidable musical intelligence throughout this visceral, empoweringly cathartic ride.

i won’t wait 4 u is now available to stream on all major platforms, including SoundCloud. 

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Frank Abraham Sweetened the Golden Hour Glow with his Emotional Electronic Music summer anthem, On a Day Like Today

To see why coining the genre Emotional Electronic Music, EEM, was necessary to encapsulate his dreamily emotive sonic signature, slip into the affecting transcendence of Frank Abraham’s latest single, On a Day Like Today. The California-based producer, DJ and curator has created a release where progressive momentum and ethereally romantic vocals move in complete synergy.

The guest vocalist reaches nirvana with her harmonies as the beats carry the track forwards, yet no single element dominates the euphoria. There is immense emotional freedom to be found within On a Day Like Today, giving you permission to dream and drift through disinhibition, far away from any notions of monotony. The production glows with the melodic uplift of artists such as RÜFÜS DU SOL and Above & Beyond, while still remaining rooted in Abraham’s own EEM ethos.

There are swathes of sync appeal in this sun-bleached masterstroke, which treats the sunset like a bittersweet event, a reminder that perfect moments go on forever only in memory, so make them while you can.

On a Day Like Today is now available to stream on all major platforms, including Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Jordan Fox’s EBENEZER is the most in-vogue alt-electronica odyssey you’ll ever hear

Following a prelude which sits between the score to a Tarantino flick and the aural aesthetics of histrionic theatre, EBENEZER by JORDAN FOX keeps the juxtapositions equally avant-garde within its adrenalised alt-electronica mix. Hints of Eastern rhythm drift through frenetic synth pop against dreamy diaphanous motifs, allowing the release to breathe and ebb under the hypnotically lush vocals.

After the intro, the divide between your consciousness and the ingenious, syncopated euphonic rushes of ecstasy in EBENEZER is practically a façade of a veil. The bass-heavy low end and percussion lock into your nervous system, while lighter, transcendent tones surrounding his choir-esque harmonic stretches give your soul freedom to explore new territory, one marked in awe for what JORDAN FOX brings to the airwaves through infinite imagination and genre-mashing syntheses of sound.

The Los Angeles-based media composer, producer and songwriter folds years of fashion-world composition into a debut single that wrestles with the fear of devoting your life to something while watching love, milestones and meaning slip past unnoticed. With electronic and orchestral textures expanding around his voice, plus a Shauna Presto-directed video featuring choreography for eight dancers, EBENEZER feels built as a full sensory event. The vocal performance alone is enough to put him on the proverbial map. Hopefully, this in-vogue odyssey isn’t too cerebral to go viral.

EBENEZER is now available to stream on all major platforms, including Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

A Galaxy of Soul Moves Through Superdj Mavr’s Psychedelic Electro Pop Hit, Memory Box

Superdj Mavr captured the euphoria of nostalgia in his latest sonic capsule of electro pop, Memory Box. Forget the old tropes of rose-tinted glasses, in this sleek mind-altering session, snapshots of the past slip through a psychedelic synth-pop kaleidoscope before drifting upwards through the cosmically lush production, which demonstrates exactly why and how Superdj Mavr earned and deserved his pedigree status.

There’s a galaxy of soul swathed into the stylistic oscillations of Memory Box, which hits all the right cinematic spots while affirming that Superdj Mavr’s true home is behind a DJ booth, watching bodies move and find transcendence to tempo. The Kyiv-based DJ, producer and vinyl devotee has spent more than 25 years shaping electronic rooms through rare records, high-energy house, techno, breaks and big beat, while helping build Ukraine’s vinyl culture through his long-standing connection to Diskultura.

The artist’s decorated and devoted history moves through Memory Box with seasoned cultivation. The production feels sleek yet reverent to the dancefloor, sharpened by club knowledge earned through decades of reading dancers at floor level. To top it all off, the outro blooms into something spiritual through nuancedly interlaced hymnal chants, and if there’s any electro pop producer worthy of being knelt to at an altar, it is Superdj Mavr

Memory Box is now available to stream on all major platforms, including SoundCloud.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

DMG Pulled Late-80s Rave Spirit Back into the Bloodstream with ‘Live the Dream’

Euphoria is in the house after DMG dropped their latest instant club classic, Live the Dream, a trancey invitation to refuse limitations and push your desire to the limits. The glitchy breakbeats syncopate their way into your bloodstream, along with an intravenous shot of adrenaline, pulling the body straight back to the sweat, circuitry and collective abandon of acid house’s most mythic corners.

Blackburn-born and Scotland-based, DMG built Live the Dream from a fascination with the late-80s Blackburn rave scene, where post-industrial surroundings became an unlikely ignition point for one of the UK’s most radical underground movements. That historical voltage runs through the single without turning it into a museum piece. Instead, found footage, period electronic fragments and rave-memory residue are folded into a track that sparks in the way only spiritually switched-on sound can.

There is a real charge in the way DMG questions nostalgia itself: who gets to feel connected to a scene, who gets to retell its folklore, and how absence can still become a form of belonging. Live the Dream understands rave culture as mythology, social rupture, sanctuary and supernatural release all at once. By the time the beat has locked into full-body command, the track has become proof that collective euphoria still has teeth.

Live the Dream is now available to stream on all major platforms, including Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Dead Air Romance: Steps from the Cliff Summoned Downtempo Darkwave Seduction from Santa Cruz Storm Rituals

With their ability to make droning electronica feel primally hymnal and set your spine in a deep freeze, Steps from the Cliff are arcane outliers in the sphere of downtempo darkwave electronica. Their latest single, Dead Air Romance, carries all of the seduction you would expect from the title, while any dystopian tints in the production are smoothed over by the non-lexical harmonies that drape soul-sourced accordance across the tableau of downtempo techno, industrial and synthwave.

It resounds like it should be reverberating across the images of a Clive Barker horror film; temptation, melancholy and friction oscillate right past the synths and static-singed beats, giving full emotional range to the monochrome sonic spectre of desire. There is a severe elegance to the way the track moves, allowing its darker textures to feel ritualistic rather than merely atmospheric.

Formed in Santa Cruz during the violent January storms of 2023, Steps from the Cliff began as Tim Knapp’s response to the precarious border between peril and possibility. That origin story bleeds into Dead Air Romance, where coastal unrest, introspection and storm-season ritual are channelled into a release that feels intimately abyssal.

Dead Air Romance is now available to stream on all major platforms, including Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Interview: Epic Sensation Unveiled the Vision Behind his Creative Empire Constructed by Bhopal Pride, Hindi Bars, and Kinetic Beats

Epic Sensation is building far beyond a string of singles, carrying his Bhopal roots into London’s cross-cultural music scene through Hindi rap, electronic production, live performance and a fiercely self-managed creative identity. In this interview, he reflects on moving from India to the UK, studying Advanced Music Technology at the University of West London, and learning how sound can pull listeners into a fully immersive experience even across language barriers. He also opens up about the confidence behind I’m Great, the foundation of Epic Sensation Ltd., upcoming clothing merchandise inspired by individuality and Bhopal pride, and Pehel, a project signalling new beginnings, international ambition and a larger world built through music, culture, technology and hope.

You’ve built Epic Sensation across India and the UK, with London now acting as a major creative base. What changed for you when you started moving through the UK music scene?

Moving through the UK music scene opened my eyes to how diverse and collaborative the creative industry can be. Back home (India), I developed my foundation as an artist, producer and entrepreneur, but London challenged me to think globally. Through studying, performing and networking, I found myself surrounded by artists from different cultures and genres. It pushed me to refine my sound, become more intentional with my artistry and approach music not just as a release, but as a long-term creative business. The UK has given me space to experiment, learn and grow while still staying connected to my roots.

Rapping in Hindi while working in an international music environment gives your sound a distinct identity. How have UK and global audiences responded to hearing Hindi language inside hip-hop and electronic production?

The response has been surprisingly very positive. Even when listeners don’t understand a word, they connect with the emotion, rhyme, flow and energy behind the music. I think audiences today are much more open to discovering music beyond language barriers. Hindi allows me to stay authentic and represent where I come from, while the production and musical influences help create a bridge for international listeners. I’ve had people tell me they don’t speak Hindi but still connect with the feeling of the song, and that’s something I find very powerful.

You studied Advanced Music Technology at the University of West London. What did that MA give you beyond technical skill, especially in terms of how you now shape your sound?

The master’s degree at the UWL gave me much more than technical knowledge. It changed the way I think about creativity and sound design. I learned how to approach music from both an artistic and technical perspective, whether through immersive audio, recording techniques or production using new technologies and even theoretical researches. More importantly, it taught me how to experiment, solve creative problems and push ideas further. Today, when I’m producing, I’m not just thinking about the song itself; I’m thinking about the listener’s experience and how every sound contributes to the story, plus how I can glue the listener and invite them into the immersive sonic experience.

I’m Great feels like a statement of self-belief and momentum. What did that release say about where you are mentally and creatively right now?

I’m Great represents confidence built through persistence and no fear of risks. As independent artists, we face challenges constantly, from funding and visibility to balancing creativity with business or even personal life. The song reflects a mindset of continuing to move forward despite obstacles. Creatively, it marks a period where I feel more comfortable embracing who I am as an artist and focusing less on comparisons in this very fast social media lifestyle where you may never know what’s real or not kind of life. It is a reminder to trust the journey and celebrate progress while continuing to grow.

You’re independently managing production, visuals, branding, live strategy, digital growth and artist merchandise. How do you keep the creative side alive while handling all the business machinery around it?

It can definitely be challenging, but I try to see the business side as another creative tool rather than a distraction. Moreover, it is a need of the time for me in my career, where economically I have responsibilities towards family and infact myself. Everything from visuals to branding helps tell the story behind the music. I also make sure to protect time for creating, whether that’s writing lyrics, producing music or developing new ideas. The business supports the art, but the music always comes first. Its like breathing, like it’s a necessity. Whenever I feel overwhelmed, I go back to why I started making music in the first place.

Epic Sensation Ltd. feels like a serious long-term move. What made you want to build a company around your artist identity rather than keeping everything purely release-based?

I always viewed Epic Sensation as more than a stage name/artist name. Over the years it evolved into a brand, a creative platform and a vision for the future. Establishing Epic Sensation Ltd. In the UK was about creating a foundation that could support music, content, merchandise, collaborations and future creative projects under one umbrella. It allows me to think long-term and build something sustainable while maintaining ownership and creative independence. I believe, it comes from my elder brother, where he always tells me this “Make sure the foundation is very strong and solid”. So, I think keeping my brother’s advice helps me in keeping the creative as well as business part on point.

Your upcoming clothing merchandise sounds like another extension of the world you’re building. What kind of visual identity or message do you want people to feel when they wear it?

I want the clothing to reflect individuality, confidence and creative freedom. And majorly I want to represent my city (Bhopal). The designs will take inspiration from music, people, places, storytelling and personal growth. For me, merchandise isn’t just about putting a logo on a T-shirt; it’s about creating something people connect with and feel part of. I want people who wear it to feel motivated to express themselves and pursue their own journey. I see myself as a small town music lover who was lucky enough to be able to move 7000 miles away from home and show it to everyone, that I CAN, SO YOU CAN TOO.

With Pehel and more projects on the way, what part of Epic Sensation do you think listeners are only just beginning to understand?

I think listeners are only beginning to see the bigger picture. So far they’ve seen individual songs, performances and singles, but there’s a much larger story connecting everything together. Pehel is an important chapter because it reflects growth, transition and new beginnings. Moving forward, I want people to experience Epic Sensation not just as music, but as a creative universe that combines sound, storytelling, technology, culture, entrepreneurship and most importantly hope.

Stream I’m Great on all major platforms, including Spotify. 

Interview by Amelia Vandergast

Bhangra, DnB and Deadpan Oddball Swagger Collide in Kingdumb’s Infectiously Kinetic Hit, ‘Weird’

Bhangra meets DnB in Kingdumb’s grimy, slick new hit, Weird. Few freak flags have flown higher than this infectious deadpan earworm, which taps into the snarled spoken word-esque punk trend before sending it into overdrive through interstellar synth spirals oscillating against the fervid rattle of electronic percussion.

Through a mesmeric cadence to his diction, Kingdumb ensnares, leaving you ravenous for more insights into his outlier world, where arbitrary social rules are left to rust and patronising insults only expose other people’s lack of autonomy in their own lives. Weird swats them away with ultimate swagger, turning outsider energy into a bass-loaded badge of honour.

As a UK producer with Indian heritage, Kingdumb offloads an arsenal of authenticity into the release, pulling Bhangra’s rhythmic bite through DnB pressure, electronic abrasion, and off-kilter club charisma. Support from BBC, Spotify, and Adidas already points towards an artist whose oddball vision travels beyond novelty, while recent mentorship from James Sanger, known for work with Phil Collins, Coldplay, and Keane, adds another thread of professional weight to his evolution. The accompanying music video doubles down on the track’s gleefully strange personality, right down to Kingdumb puncturing go-kart tyres during filming.

Weird is now available to stream on all major platforms, including Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Blue Flame Puts KYXORA at the Edge of IDM’s Cerebral Skyline

IDM reached its cerebral zenith through the unveiling of Blue Flame by the music producer, multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, and mood curator KYXORA. Following a cinematically Hans Zimmer-esque intro, the instrumental release builds into a world away from filmic opulence, moving towards transcendence, guided by kinetic energy which oscillates throughout the production, seemingly rising from the arrangement itself rather than spilling from any individual instrumental layer.

The track gradually picks up a spacey charge of electricity before winding back down against a neo-classic piano outro, giving Blue Flame the feeling of a mind returning from some astral threshold with its nerve endings glowing. KYXORA clearly has a certain kind of alchemical tenacity when arranging compositions that stick with you emotionally as much as melodically, allowing intellectual intuition and feeling to coexist without the score ever losing its sense of wonder and gravity.

Hong Kong-born and UK-trained, KYXORA brings a background in classical music, piano, percussion, and music technology into a self-produced universe of mood music, easy-listening instrumentals, melodic architecture, and forward-facing electronic design. Every element, from songwriting and arrangement to final mixing and mastering, is shaped independently from their home studio, giving Blue Flame its rare sense of total authorship.

Blue Flame is now available to stream on all major platforms, including Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Kace Interview: A View into the Mind of a Man Turning Hardstyle into Exposure Therapy for Anyone Afraid to Be ‘Cringe’

Kace is only two releases into his career, yet with DJ OFF, he’s already dropped a manifesto for anyone tired of being hyper-aware of how they are perceived. Built from heavy bass, hard techno, hardstyle, ridiculous lyrics, and a refusal to stay polished for the sake of respectability, the track became a kind of exposure therapy against cringe culture. In this interview, Kace opens up about growing up around judgement, finding self-expression through loud music, using production to unlock confidence, and wanting ravers to dance like phones have ceased to exist. he’s also reflects on Gen Z perfectionism, AI-era imperfection, nihilism, sexuality, desire, Hollywood party fantasies, and why being real matters more than being flawless

DJ OFF is the kind of track that allows everyone to collectively forget about real life for a few minutes. What sparked the idea behind the track, and when did you realise it needed to be silly, heavy, and completely unashamed?

DJ OFF was made for letting loose. What sparked the idea was my fear of being perceived by others. That fear made me hold back from releasing a lot of music, so putting out an unapologetic song early on helps me not overthink my work. I also feel like my generation, Gen Z and even Gen Alpha, are too serious. We label something cringe if it doesn’t fit a box or a narrative. I am guilty of that too.

How did it feel to lose all sense of pretence and embrace chaos with the lyrics in DJ OFF? 

It felt really freeing and fun. Writing outlandish lyrics over a heavy beat is healing in a way. I used to feel caged in, worried about being seen as cringe, but DJ OFF became a kind of exposure therapy for me. Letting go of pretence was exactly what I had been missing.

Was that freedom something you had been missing in your music before this release?

Definitely, even though I grew up listening to Kesha, Sophie, and Kim Petras, I still struggled to pioneer a sound or to be able to express myself freely like the artists I mentioned. Expressing yourself can be done through more serious and slow ballads, of course, but I’ve always gravitated towards upbeat music.

At only 20 years old, and still at the stage of releasing a sophomore release, you’ve got your whole creative career ahead of you. What feels most exciting about being at this raw, early stage where nothing has to be too polished or over-explained yet?

Even though being this early in a creative career isn’t easy, it is always rewarding. The most exciting thing is definitely gaining an audience slowly but surely, growing a community, and finding like-minded people.

Before producing, you said you struggled to express yourself. What was it about heavy bass, hard techno, and hardstyle that finally gave you a way to say what words could not?

I find heavy bass music very unapologetic. I grew up in a very closed-off environment where music like this was frowned upon and demonised. Getting to a point in my life where I can express myself without feeling othered is very freeing. The music says what I never could.

Loud music can make people feel powerful, feral, euphoric, or completely untouchable. What does that kind of sound unlock in you when you are creating it and when you’re the one in the crowd/wearing the headphones? 

I often find myself living vicariously through loud music. On those low days when I feel self-conscious, I open my project file before I even know what I want to say. Making music brings up my mood and my confidence. I feel like I have unlocked a higher version of myself.

When you imagine people hearing DJ OFF in a crowd, what kind of moment do you want them to have?

I want people listening to DJ OFF to dance like phones do not exist. I want their energy to be just as ridiculous and outlandish as the beat and the lyrics.

A lot of young artists feel pressure to sound serious or fully formed straight away. How important is it for you to keep that playful, chaotic, still-figuring-it-out energy alive in your music?

It is extremely important. I am guilty of fearing how I am perceived or criticised, and that is something artists deal with throughout their careers, especially at the start when we do not know if our music will even be tolerated. Releasing experimental, playful music is my middle finger to that feeling.

Why do you think there’s so much pressure for artists (and everyone else) to maintain the illusion that they’ve got everything figured out?

I think social media made us believe everyone else is living a perfectly planned life. At the end of the day, it’s only human nature to want to put the best version of yourself out there.

But I feel like there is definitely a shift culturally towards less curated, more raw sounds and imagery with the rise of AI , when “perfection” is accessible, imperfections starts getting valued

What do you think DJ OFF says about who Kace is right now, and what do you hope it opens up for your next releases?

Not to come off as too deep, but DJ OFF represents my nihilism and my desire to be myself because life is too short. It says that I would rather be real than perfect. I hope DJ OFF opens the door for me to take bigger creative swings without second-guessing.

I have a ton more fun dance pop songs coming up that explore different themes of sexuality, desire, and fantasizing about partying in Hollywood.

Connect with Kace on all major platforms via this link.

Interview by Amelia Vandergast