Eastern Margins Premiere

@sopr3tty shines clear. 

The Filipino-Canadian newcomer's vision is in stark focus - everything you see and hear is sculpted to his own specifications. "iiCarus" is his debut single, clearing the runaway to fly high. Weightless vocals sit on top of his own instrumentals - and are accompanied by his own self-directed video. 

Drawing influence from Trance, Eurodance to Ambient music. sopretty's universe oscillates between the euphoria of EDM and the beautiful sincerity of cloud rap.

He sits at the epicentre of a constellation of Asian talent centred in Toronto, Shine Klub, that’s steadily beginning to reveal their rich world. This is just the start.

Head over to our IGTV for the accompanying Music Video.

PREMIERE: sopretty - iiCarus

Abrasion turns into catharsis in ‘funeral’, as @ohyungdatitan & @lucytheliyou dance in the shadows between pop and noise.

OHYUNG & lucy liyou are two artists with the beguiling ability to turn abrasion into beauty. In ‘funeral’, wind chimes float like the breath of the wild before making way for blown-out distorted drums and a gentle soliloquy. The track walks through three movements, inviting you to reflection and carathasis alike. ‘funeral’ is testimony to the bravery of both OHYUNG’s & lucy liyou’s music - never shying away from the unexpected.

The track is taken from Tetra Hysteria Manifesto, the forthcoming excellent offering from our favourite experimental collective, @chinabot. The compilation features many of the first artists affiliated with @chinabot, as well as showcasing new additions, which playfully explores the superstition around the number 4 prevalent throughout parts of Asia. Tetra Hysteria Manifesto is an acceptance of the uncertain - a radical acceptance that some things are out of control, against the desire to control things that we may not necessarily have in our power.

PREMIERE: OHYUNG - funeral Ft. lucy liyou [Chinabot]

IZZIT?! (Single)

IZZIT?! - BAYANG (tha Bushranger) feat. Jamaica Moana [Prod. Ryan Fennis]

EASTERN MARGINS PREMIERE

'Pointless War Machine' by @logiclost, is a refracted hallucination taken from BRUTEFORCED 01, the first compilation by Yogyakarta's @softbruterecords. A moment of tranquility on an EP of brutal tension, @logiclost evokes the haze of 00s DMZ-eyes down bass-weight, transported to the twilight of a humid Jakarta night in the low season.

'I've been reading about war technology recently and read about these two monstrosities called the Paris Gun and the bertha howitzer in WWI. They are capable of incredible damage but are ineffective in battle and existed merely as symbols of western cockiness and their eternal lust for war. Therefore pointless war machines.”

BRUTEFORCED 01 sees @softbruterecords drawing from 4 artists across cities and scenes in Indonesia's thriving experimental underground, and represents the surface ripples of a deep lake of talent. Keep your ears to the ground for this crew - this is just the beginning.

BRUTEFORCED 01

PREMIERE: Logic Lost - Pointless War Machine [SOFT/BRUTE]

EASTERN MARGINS PREMIERE

‘Getih Jagat’ by HXXMO @hilmothio is the first single from his upcoming EP ‘Dentum Jagat Roh’, to be released on cassette tape by Jakarta’s @gabe-gabe-tapes . This single is an exploration of the story of the Barata Yudha war in Javanese Mythology. Combining gamelan, electronic production, and dalang speeches, ‘Getih Jagat’ is a spiritual journey to an alternate dimension, as well as a representation of Javanese culture in a contemporary medium.
 
HXXMO is a musician, producer, and DJ based in Malang, Indonesia. Starting out as a DJ in Australia's art and club circuit, he had since returned home and made his mark via co-founding the underground electronic labels Posh Lotus Records and Spectral Tribe Records and founding Room 404 Community Radio in Batu. He also has radio shows on Hong Kong Community Radio (@hkcrlive), Noods Radio (@noodsradio), Norrm Radio (@norrm), Radio AlHara, and Radio Raheem among others.

Graphic Design and Art Direction by Almer Rashad
Typography and lettering by Faiz Aditida

HXXMO: https://www.instagram.com/hilmothio/
GABE GABE TAPES: https://www.instagram.com/gabegabetapes/

PREMIERE: HXXMO - Getih Jagat [Gabe Gabe Tapes]

’49 Days of Quarantine Before Freedom’ is @nodeynguyen ’s contribution to the debut compilation from Saigon-based collective @nhacgay, ‘Nhạc Gãy Tổng Hợp Số 1’.

Nhạc Gãy is the thumping heartbeat of Saigon’s underground rave scene. We were lucky enough to stumble into the first ever Gãy party in 2019 - a sweat drenched affair hidden in the backroom of a cocktail bar at the the periphery of Saigon’s infamous Bùi Viện street. Since then, they’ve been the catalyst for crystallizing new club mutations in Saigon and Vietnam. 

’49 Days of Quarantine Before Freedom’ by @nodeynguyen is a perfect encapsulation of @nhacgay ’s ethos - traditional Vietnamese instrumentation meets Gabber, Vinahouse meets Rage Against the Machine. In his own words:

“For this track, I sampled a Vietnamese oboe named « kèn đám ma » which is played at funerals. I added 2 overdrive bass, one sounds like gabber music, the other one sounds like ”Rage Against The Machine”, then I added a Vinahouse bridge. It became « 49 Days Of Quarantine Before Freedom”. I hope my friends will play this song the day I’ll die and they ”Bật luôn công tắc gật đầu” ("switch the headbanging mode on”)”

The whole compilation - ‘Nhạc Gãy Tổng Hợp Số 1’, is a dizzying concoction of sounds - techno, gabber, idm, vinahouse, industrial, hip-hop, breakbeat…all sit together in jagged unison. This compilation features artists, both local and diasporic Vietnamese, gathered to create original tracks using club music as a medium to unite and experiment around their shared heritage and identity. Vietnamese vocals and traditional instruments are fused with global contemporary dance music influences, pushing forward a new hybrid cross-cultural sound that is still defining itself.

In collaboration with local organizations and professionals in Saigon, all profits from this compilation will go towards Nhạc Gãy's fund dedicated to spreading mental health awareness.

@nhacgay - https://nhacgay.bandcamp.com/
@nodeynguyen - https://soundcloud.com/nodeynguyen

PREMIERE: Nodey - 49 Days Of Quarantine Before Freedom [Nhạc Gãy]

Alternative Asian Culture.

Talk to us: music@easternmargins.com