WTF is the initial reaction to the new Critz song, but the Bass & Tech House track has a big potential to land in the music playlists of those who love some funky weirdness on their grooves in 2023. The tongue-in-cheek number plays with a set of vocal samples and dialogues layered on top of a skeletal, somewhat metallic beat, which creates a surreal and trippy atmosphere.
The Colorado-based producer achieves this thanks to manipulating the samples to build up a contrast with the mechanical beat. While the robotic rhythm-section evolves from a plain kit consisting of bass drums and hi-hats, a low-pitched sample playing on top tries to make a statement with an obscure, slow and stoned intonation, only to get cut off by Critz, as he moves the track into the main section, introducing the repeating WTF sample, sliced to play as a supporting rhythm. Later, we hear the auto-responder stating that the number has been disconnected from service, and the producer introduces more bleepy sounds that fit into the context.
This back and forth between the auto-responder and the caller continues through the entire new Critz song, and is effectively the backbone of the three and a half-minute track, with the sampled phone sounds being another core component for building the vibe of WTF. While the sampled voice is mostly spoken-word, it doesn’t feel like it’s an interlude, since it’s recorded in a way that it partially lands on the beat and smoothly accentuates some of its parts. Thanks to this arrangement choice, everything on WTF feels very organic and spontaneous, but highly entertaining and dancey at the same time. Another important thing that’s achieved through this, is that the track doesn’t become boring after a few repeats, making it a great Bass & Tech House music to vibe to in 2023.
