On Our Radar: May 2020

PILO

Having spent the past year in Berlin after moving to the German capital from his native Los Angeles, techno sage Cameron Ward (AKA PILO) has reached a new high in his level of production prowess. An integral member of the Boysnoize crew, his latest A.R.E.A. EP on BNR is his most confident and unfettered work to date, bringing you harder drums with an obsessive, hot-blooded, and industrial character that simply won’t quit. He’s recently dropped a superb ambient EP titled The Self Improvement Era, and he is currently gearing up to release his collaborative LP IN FRAGMENTS with LA noise guru, Baseck — set to drop on May 21 via his new imprint, Motor Reflex. Get locked and let PILO’s outlandish and unhinged sounds take hold.

29 PALMS

29 Palms is a new passion project from Ooah and Boreta, two members of the pioneering bass music trio, The Glitch Mob. After having worked on getting the project off the ground for years, the duo finally delivered this past April with Nobody Horizon — a bewildering and intricate four-track EP that faultlessly hurtles listeners into their new realm of explorative, hypnotic dancefloor-focused music. Shortly after releasing their debut, 29 Palms followed it up with the two-tracker, Unfolding EP. “We wrote ‘Unfolding’ and ‘Starsplitter’ as an experiment in faster tempos for our set at The Do Lab stage at Coachella in 2019,” the duo explains. Heady and tribal to its core, these are two releases that aim and deliver in transporting their fiercely loyal fanbase into new and unearthly sonic territories.

KLEIN ZAGE

After making a huge splash with her debut Womanhood EP last year, the only answer one can truthfully expect to the question “do you want to listen to Klein Zage?” is “Absolutely.” Coupling her old school house and techno sound with witty lyricism, the NYC-based artist’s perceptive and raw music is teeming with an aura of club night satisfaction. Her latest EP, Tip Me Baby One More Time — released via her Orphan Records imprint — is a tongue in cheek ode to working in the service industry. The timing of the record is very apt as she’s a waitress by day and is currently out of a job due to the current global pandemic. In a selfless and admirable act, the artist is donating all profit from this release to the Restaurant Workers Community Foundation Covid-19 Emergency Relief Fund as well as the New York’s Service Workers Coalition. So have a night out at home with the surreal sounds of Klein Zage and be sure to ‘Tip! Baby One More Time.’

SIDEPIECE

A fresh new duo consisting of Latin Grammy Award-winning producer Nitti Gritti and verified trap master Party Favor, the collaborative project SIDEPIECE, quickly invaded the dance music charts after linking up with Diplo to create the hit track “On My Mind,” in late 2019. Released on Mad Decent’s house-focused sub-label, Higher Ground, the dancefloor slammer — which samples 702’s ’90s R&B classic “Steelo” — has racked up millions of streams, landed the #1 spot in Beatport’s Bass House genre, and received remix treatments from MK, Purple Disco Machine, and Billy Kenny. Although both Nitti Gritti and Party Favor are well-established individuals in their respective genres, the partnership shows excellent promise in its ability to crank out further smash hits.

LA LA

Hailing from Glasgow and currently based in London, Lauren Andrew (AKA La La) has been steadily cementing her reputation as one of the UK’s most impressive and well-versed selectors for years. First starting her mission to become a DJ in 2011, La La eventually landed a six-year residency at FLY, a weekly Sunday party at the famed Scottish nightspot, Sub Club. After hitting the decks weekly with other famed residents such as Denis Sulta and Eclair Fifi, La La has built up her chops to the point of bringing her international recognition. Over the past year, she made her extremely well-received Boiler Room debut, has landed multiple spots on Rinse FM, and, most recently, featured on the latest Keinemusik Radio Show. This hotly tipped DJ was set to have a breakout year in 2020, but even with the pandemic looming in the background, La La is still poised to make some serious moves once dancefloors open back up.

Cameron Holbrook is a staff writer for Beatportal. Find him on Twitter.