Raised in a remote Saxon forest and with a tendency towards fantasy and strangeness, Smatka’s debut EP showcases an act who may soon be knocking for admittance to the Ranks of the Great Eccentrics. Mixing a love of opera and theatrics with pop-experimental noise, and with her trace of accent rendering her menacing purr of a voice instantly, exotically recognisable, Smatka creates something at once surreal, dramatic and satisfyingly danceable.
Bullishly idiosyncratic but with an ear for a great pop tune, the EP begins with a high-pitched, menacingly soft squeal of noise before erupting into the minimally elastic pop beats which soundtrack the story of the small-minded ‘Mr V’. Second track ‘I Just No’, opening with a stomping, operatic intro, features a similar penchant for whiplash electric beats and a sense of the fun of experimentation, as well as having the kind of punchy energy which just demands that the listener dance. Top it all off with the terrifyingly, explicitly Freudian soundscape of ‘The Daughter’, all hollow drums and whispered implication, and the whole adds up to something well worth checking out by those who like their admirable innovation packaged in a manner which gets the dancefloor heaving.
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7's Score