April starts with some refreshing takes in the more niche-subgenres of electronic music. A great example of this is the new DND RECS G-House banger BIJOU – The Player’s Anthem (ft Benny The Butcher) with its multi-directional, Hydra-like sound.
It’s a track that manages to stay perfectly confident in its brutality and aggressiveness, while maintaining the musicality that comes from decades-long traditions of its many influences. The Player’s Anthem makes these connections work mainly through vibe-driven musical sketches that are painted upon the drum-sections and bass. Everything’s very abstract, and one section of the track progresses almost independently of the other on this new BIJOU & Benny The Butcher song. But at the same time, everything’s connected into a big, solid mural with the use of a precise and focused toolbox of production tricks.
The artists use a set of vivid signifiers to hint to the listener about the roots of their sound. This is present even on the cover art aesthetics, which are an obvious reference to some Houston based Pen & Pixel classics. Sonic-wise, it’s playing with the trippy, texture-rich, pattern-oriented melodies popularized by the likes of Geto Boys and OutKast. At the same time, the new BIJOU & Benny The Butcher song is not at all obsessed with authenticity of the production. It’s a series of measured, yet expressive brush strokes. And only the omnipresent bass is perhaps the most unfettered element of the track.
This bass-oriented sound is the reason neither the synths, nor the samples or the drums on this new DND RECS G-House banger feel repetitive. The catchy and tight basslines on BIJOU – The Player’s Anthem (ft Benny The Butcher) are like a giant playground where the artists can work in any given direction without worrying about reaching a dead end. It’s a beautiful chain of interconnected loops that, when played on repeat, make the track bloom and be more satisfying after each listen.
