MUSIC REVIEW: Hoodlem's debut EP is intoxicating
Presenting their self-titled debut EP, Hoodlem brings to the table an intoxicating handful of fragmented R&B electronic. And you’d best bet it goes hand in hand with claps of cosmic percussion.
Hoodlem, Hoodlem
Right off the bat, their first track ‘Collapse’ borders on sounding a bit much. Confused, even. Branded as a banging love-making track, this song is anything but. How anyone could have sex to such a regressive pulse of electronica is beyond me. ‘Collapse’ aside, the entirety of the EP settles at a delectable pace. By the time you tune into the second track – ‘Kintsugi’ – the dynamic shifts and becomes hard to fault. What starts off as excessively glitchy electronica implodes and refines itself as a sensual, slow-moving record for the soul.
4 Real’ ushers in more unabashed waves of vocal ecstasy; a real treat for those who swear by headphones. (for real.) The blend of genres is arrantly easy on the ears, yet without compromise to Hoodlem’s captivating sound. Next comes ‘Old Friend’, the first song written for the EP, and it demands well-deserved praise. Surreal female vocals triumph in this one, surrendering the listener to its melodies and reverberant bass lines. Nonetheless the concluding track left me lusting for more.
With warbled and intimate lyrics, Hoodlem is the kind of music for a quiet night in with the significant other, or lone slow dances paired with a cheap (but remedial) glass of wine.
In the urban scene of pastiched genres, Hoodlem have already effortlessly established their place.
Hoodlem’s Debut EP is available now via Caroline Music in Australia and New Zealand, and on iTunes and Apple Music for the rest of the globe.
