UDG assembled – ‘Dezi Freeman’ by Ribby247, 4orttune, Isaac Puerile and Villyszn
We’re not glazing, but our job is to cover the underground, and again we’ve gotta shout out Villyszn, Isaac Puerile, 4orttune and Ribby247. On the single, ‘Dezi Freeman’, it feels like producer Don is on his DJ Khaled shit, bringing all of them together… the who’s who of the Australian UDG scene.
Lyrically, it’s controversial as always with plenty of risky references – Ned Kelly and Dezi Freeman both get a shout out, plenty of jabs at opps and a genuinely hectic chorus.
Production-wise, it’s smooth and well-weighted, with the right amount of distortion. As a magazine, we’re not meant to pick a favourite verse, but we’re leaning 4orttune.
Floating sounds – ‘Truth be told’ by Aywy
The first thing that grabs you is the production. It’s complex, layered and honestly hard to pinpoint, with Indian instrumentation, vocal samples, guitar and strings all combining throughout the track. But it still feels unmistakably R&B-coded.
Aywy, best known for his production work, also jumps on the track, and his voice moves with the waves of the floating sounds.
Really smooth, really underrated.
Vibe – ‘teen spirit’ by AMAR.
AMAR.’s new single ‘teen spirit’ is a risky move. Taking on a song as untouchable as ‘Smells Like Teen Spirit’ means you’re stepping into the shadow of the gods of 1990s grunge, Nirvana. But AMAR. doesn’t see it that way, telling us: ‘To me, I didn’t see it as a risk. I feel as if music is art and to be held back by the fear of something being risky, or people taking it a bad way, is a terrible way to look at creativity. I thought the melodies were hard, so I took it upon myself to make it current and more me.’
But credit to him, he pulls it off in his own way. The production still feels like an AMAR. song with his signature sound, alongside the signature Nirvana chords and Kurt Cobain’s vocals. Asked where ‘teen spirit’ sits in his catalogue, AMAR. said: ‘I can do anything on anything. I been making music for nine years now, but I feel as if teen spirit is the most experimental/raw shi I’ve put out. Not to take away from the rest of my public discography, but to me teen spirit is the most me product I’ve showcased yet. Moving forward, I’ll continue to do so.’
Soulful heartbreak – Soft Like Fire EP by Ms. Thandi
Ms. Thandi released her debut EP Soft Like Fire last month, packed with six soulful songs, and like the name suggests, it’s a story of contrast.
The standout for us is ‘Meant2Be’. She’s coming for whoever fucked her over. It’s a real real love song, full of that messy emotion of love, you know where you both hate and love that person?
Speaking to Loiter, Ms. Thandi said: ‘That tension is definitely intentional. Love can be complicated and full of contradictions. Sometimes your heart needs time, and/or revenge, to catch up to your mind when you realise that someone has been playing with your feelings. Rage is important.’
‘As much as I want you
As much as I could kill you right now’
The guitar solo at the end bleeding into the voicemail is seamless. And for hip-hop fans, where it’s usually some unfortunate woman getting caught on voicemail and ending up on a song, Ms. Thandi switches it and puts a dude’s voicemail on the track instead.
For fans of Amapiano, the track ‘Just a Dance’, produced by Melbourne-based Kuda, has that signature sound, with Ms. Thandi’s soulful vocals on top.
After working through the rollercoaster of emotions that is love, the EP ends by accepting vulnerability on ‘Here I Am’. We asked her about the emotional arc of the EP, and she explained: ‘I think Soft Like Fire is representative of the chaotic journey of self-acceptance I’ve been on, working through different emotions and situations. The creation of the songs inadvertently revealed this story arc that comes across in the EP, which then informed how we structured the order of the songs. The final track, Here I Am, very much feels like closing a loop but also a new beginning. For my people who pay attention, you’ll notice the project starts with a breath in Day Dreaming, and is completed with a breath at the end of Here I Am.’
Listen to the full EP here:
1 am thoughts – ‘green eyes’ by Miles Nautu
‘green eyes’ feels like early mixtape K.Dot in its approach. The production is smooth, minimal and laid-back, which gives Miles room to do what he does best and let his lyrics carry the song. You can hear Kendrick in the track’s style, and the subject matter matches it: jealousy, embarrassment and self-awareness.
Speaking to Loiter, Miles said: ‘I think or hope this song shows my ability to storytell and my ability to understand and write emotions as they truly are.’
On whether the track was trying to catch that late-night, post-going-out headspace, he said: ‘Honestly, that might be how a lot of this record was written. I think I came up with a lot of the ideas and concepts around the track during moments like that, so it’s maybe less what I was aiming for but something that naturally came through the writing.’
We reckon this track is for the train ride home after a night out with friends, if you’re overthinking how the night went.
Tequila music – ‘Whistle’ by Hooligan Hefs feat. Savage
Hooligan Hefs links up with New Zealand OG Savage – the first NZ rapper to go platinum – for a proper club banger. Savage’s feature, combined with the production, has that 2010s throwback sound, the kind you’d expect to see Pitbull jump on.
The production is handled by Open Till L8, who’s worked with Hefs before, has an EDM background and you can hear it in the deep-house bass, melodic electro and the beat build-up.
You’ll most likely hear this when you’re out and three tequila shots deep, or for those on a health kick – at spin class.
On a related note, Hefs is currently on an Australia-wide tour, and recently completed his Perth show with support from Izzar and Zero Emcee, both artists we’ve covered before.
