Those of you who have been with us since 2011 might well recognise the name Leno Lovecraft, but for those of you who don’t – he’s a producer from New Zealand, who released ‘EP1#’ via Maman Records back in 2011.
That EP featured a host of tracks, but one really stood out – ‘Princess’. You should probably check out the Leno Lovecraft remix now, we can wait.
We’re glad to report that Leno is back with a brand-new EP, and it’s being given away via Ryan Hemsworth’s label Secret Songs.
Like his previous work, his new EP, ‘Platinum Planet’, is steeped in influences ranging from J-pop to chip tunes to French pop, but there’s also contemporary influences in there, too, like bass music and maybe even EDM.
The stand out track is the title track, it’s a kaleidoscope of thick, stodgy basslines, out-of-control melodies, and a massively over-the-top J-pop vocal. It shouldn’t work, but it totally does.
The rest of EP is just as manic quite frankly, ‘High Definition Emotion’ is almost too much for words, but when the vocals aren’t taking over some of melodies at play are amazing.
‘Starlight’ is even harder to explain, but suffice to say it’s easily one the EP’s highlights. ‘Alien Islands’ is another big stand-out track, bat-shit crazy, too – it’s basically Leno’s take on EDM, but with one major difference: it doesn’t blow.
‘Holographic Waterfalls’ is J-pop meets chip tunes, again, the vocal is way out-there, but the rest of the track is so good it overshadows any annoyance.
All-in-all quite a spectacular return.