London house music producer Bella Boo’s latest EP, Looney Talks, is a testament to her innate versatility and creativity. Best known for her ethereal approach to house music, Bella Boo takes a more contemporary, direct, and club-focused approach on this EP that speaks toward her knowledge of underground trends and micro-genres.
Drawing on influences from afrobeat and dancehall sounds, Bella Boo adds a raucous sense of fun to the music by weaving through the polyrhythms and patterns associated with these styles. The standout track, Dancehall, is fiery and energetic. It evolves as it burns along, pulling from different genres such as its namesake dancehall and amapiano. It’s a joy to discover how Boo’s slyly and cleverly evolves familiar rave tropes through inventive new takes. Take Looney, for instance. The track proves the perfect opening to the EP. A propulsive afrobeat-gqom hybrid, it’s Boo’s tactical use of trashy dance tropes like sirens and a brilliantly placed hoover synth that really gives Looney its audacious point of view. It starts Boo’s party off with a bang, demonstrating her skill in layering different sounds and textures to create a complex and dynamic listening experience.
Download and stream Looney Talks here
The final track, Get Away, takes a traditional piano-led house sound and evolves it with the addition of dembow and elements of reggaeton. This creates an immersive and danceable track that showcases Boo’s ability to push the boundaries of established genres while holding her listener’s attention. Girls, meanwhile, flirts with breaks and UK garage before shifting into breezy balearic. Though enjoyable, it feels the least innovative of the bunch.
Overall, Looney Talks is a fantastic addition to Bella Boo’s discography and an excellent showcase of her talent as a producer. By drawing on diverse influences and adding inventive new takes on familiar sounds, she has crafted an EP that is fun, innovative, and speaks directly to the crowds she plays to at venues like Panorama Bar and Phonox. If you’re looking for an intoxicating dance experience with personality to back it back, Bella’s got you covered, boo.
Listen to Looney from Looney Talks below.
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