Lau.Ra Vol. 1 - The Collection

Boundary pushing electronic artist, lau.ra, delivers her debut mixtape Vol. 1 - The Collection, on Needwant - an imprint that’s developed artists such as Kim Ann Foxman, Ejeca, Kiwi, Meg Ward, Rein, and Paris Green. Vol. 1 is a diverse collection of bass driven records which are instantly recognisable as lau.ra’s own developed and unique style.

The downtempo, overdriven banger ‘Sideways’ kicks off the LP, Featuring self-taught star Secaina on vocals, wonky drum grooves, blasts of grizzly bass and warped rubber synths that add up to a fantastically fat and wobbly groove that straddles multiple genres at once. ‘Get Creative’ draws parallels with ’Sideways’ with it’s four to the floor beat and entrancing vocal from East London singer-songwriter Nova, also known as Nova Newland, a performer with a distinctive, gender defying voice.

Frequent collaborator, Eliza Legzdina, features on two of the LP’s tracks; ‘Blow’ and ‘Wicked’. The lead single, ‘Blow’, is laden with crunchy percussion, heavy bass and lau.ra’s signature synth style with Eliza Legzdina’s vocal confidently powering the progression. It is in your face and impossible to ignore. ‘Wicked’ instantly gets you warmed up with a blast of saturated bass before Eliza’s enticing vocal draws you deeper into the tracks hard and bare groove.

'Chengdu’ is a laidback eastern jam which is driven by a soft flute motif that carries you softly into a field of scattered percussion, skipping beats and an unforgiving bassline which contrasts perfectly with its mellow surroundings. The track is reminiscent of the underground UKG scene with its swung beats and a withdrawn, reverb soaked vocal sample drawing parallels with Burial’s earlier work. ‘Don’t Waste My Time’ shares in the underground UKG vibe and features a hard and direct vocal delivery from Kiwi artist JessB. Model Man delivers a stripped and euphoric back remix of ‘Don’t Waste My Time’ as the album’s final track.

lau.ra was dubbed by Radio 1 legend Annie Mac as "a one woman powerhouse” and her singles, ‘Don’t Waste My Time’ and ‘Wicked’, received massive support from Radio 1, 6 Music, Triple J and has had features on The Guardian and Billboard. Vol. 1 is set to secure her a place as one of the greats and make a dent in the safe structures of the dance music scene.