UPFRONTBEATS

Barcelona-based multifaceted artist Raven joins Radio Slave’s Rekids with an incredibly imaginative five-track debut release.

Born in Canada, Raven is a talented nomad who’s been cutting her teeth as a DJ, producer, singer and songwriter whilst living in Los Angeles, Chicago, Berlin, Toronto, and Mexico City. As a performer, she joins the dots between Techno, Acid, Electro and early Rave: a genre-spanning approach she applies to her productions too, making her a difficult artist to pigeonhole. Discovered by Matt Edwards, Raven now joins Rekids – a label responsible for introducing some of electronic music’s most incendiary names to the scene, including the likes of Nina Kraviz and Peggy Gou.

Opening gently with ethereal atmospherics, ‘Flames’ springs into action with galloping percussion, echoing effects, metallic nuances and Raven’s poignant singing. Following on, ‘Saint’ bangs from the word go courtesy of its convoluted rhythm, piercing claps and soaring background synths whilst rave sounds and murky lyrics operate throughout.

Thudding kicks and crystalline pads then pair up beautifully with her serene voice in the lively ‘In2U’, leading into the more downtempo ‘BBGRL’ that employs purring sub-bass, emotional melodies and acid squelches. Tying everything together, ‘Insomnia’ inaugurates with sweet chords and re-pitched vocals before robust drums drive it onwards into the distance.

• FB: facebook.com/raven.unltd
• Soundcloud: soundcloud.com/raven
• Beatport: beatport.com/raven-ca