The Belgian artist revisits his last LP through a new lens
Out 29th April | Haliblue Records/Universal Music Germany/Polydor UK
“The goal was to breathe new life into this album in which we invested a lot of love and effort, exploring various stylistic horizons” , YellowStraps says. “This allowed us to further develop the hybrid aspect of the project, which was the original intention with the album.”
A year on from the release of his acclaimed fourth studio LP tentacle, YellowStraps has put together an EP of album reinterpretations. Dropping 29th April (on Haliblue Records/Universal Music Germany/Polydor UK), the four-track project entitled ‘tentacle, but different’ shines a new light on tentacle’s highlights, with genre-hopping takes on the LP’s finest moments.
Opening the EP, focus track ‘sorrysorrysorry (sad sometimes)’ gets an upbeat rework, with the original’s bare piano replaced by shimmering synths and a bassy-heavy, dubstep/UKG influenced groove. Next up, the brooding masterpiece ‘notice (know this)’ is given a peppy uptempo makeover, before ‘tnght (i can feel)’, one of tentacle’s breezier pop moments, is taken down a darker path with tight rhythms and moody synth tones. Finally, late album tentacle slow jam ‘headown (let’s talk about trust)’ raises the BPM on the original, morphing the track into a dancefloor-ready banger bursting with chopped-up vocal hooks.
The EP comes after the well-received UKG rework of tentacle highlight ‘blue’, which garnered praise from Masego, SiR, Yussef Dayes as well as pop legend Nelly Furtado, as well as YellowStraps’ late 2023 single ‘Slowdown (girl what’s up)’, which has 14 million streams on Spotify alone.
The Brussels-based artist has been blazing a trail in the Belgian rap scene in recent years and, after a string of successful singles, and album and international tours over the past year, the artist has made another giant leap forward. Now with tour dates in Barcelona (La Nau on 23rd May) and Madrid (Bassement Club on 24th May), it’s only big things ahead for 2024.
Founded in Brussels, YellowStraps has been nurturing a unique neo-soul blend that caresses the senses for nearly ten years now, proudly championed by the bubbling Belgian rap scene in which they are a part of. An evolving musician and songwriter, he has gathered success from names like VICE and Complex, gained tastemaker support from brands like COLORS, Vans and Fred Perry, and collaborated with the likes of Sam Wise, Roméo Elvis and Swing on his recent LP tentacle.
EP tracklist:
1. sorrysorrysorry (sad sometimes)
2. notice (know this)
3. tnght (i can feel)
4. blue (yes, i love you)
5. headown (let’s talk about trust)
6. slowdown (girl, what’s up)
Tour dates:
23 May – Spain, Barcelona – La Nau
24 May – Spain, Madrid – The Bassement Club
10 October – France, Paris – La Maroquinerie
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