NEW SOUNDS

Discovered by Brainfeeder beat shaman Ras G, VHVL is Veronica Lauren from Brooklyn, New York. Still at university, Lauren’s beats present another side of the afrocentric future funk that the likes of Flying Lotus and co. are constantly bringing into our orbit. With a lack of vowels and full of artistic anguish, a VHVL track is guaranteed to be tight, sparse, and brimming with 8-bit bass grooves that make furniture and hips quiver in tandem. Her best beats have a spiritual quality to them, as they often evolve around syncopated loops of vibrant percussion. Synthesizers float along the top like cream. Her debut release is one side of a cassette on Stones Throw Records, and Lauren tenaciously presents the music in a single track that meditates on feelings of loneliness, sensitivity, and the weight of society. The long-form piece evolves in unexpected ways, and many of the section could stand alone as separate songs – possibly done on purpose. None are to be missed.