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I don't exactly know what New Orleans bounce music is, but I know that if you're looking for it, you're probably going to Big Freedia; the artist responsible for popularizing this regional form of hip-hop. In my case, Big Freedia's new three-track EP serves as my introduction to the genre thanks to production from the late, great SOPHIE. Back in 2016, SOPHIE was at a creative peak, fresh off the mind-melting club of her singles collection PRODUCT and actively engineering the hyperpop wave alongside collaborators like Charli XCX. During this period, she also collaborated with Big Freedia, yet these tracks were left in the vault, until now. The title of their new three-track EP, Released At Last, obviously references the lengthy period of time the tracks remained dormant. But more importantly, it's a permit to shake the perky object enshrined on the cover with wild abandon.
I'll admit that my first spin of the lead single, Blaze That Ass, left me entirely unconvinced. Unfamiliar with the genre's characteristics, I initially found Big Freedia's incessant vocal callouts to be quite annoying and lacking in substance. However, after letting the full EP run its course and realizing that this relentlessly hype delivery is the main feature, I recognized that I had approached the EP with the wrong set of ears. Once I shifted my perspective, I found Big Freedia's militant commands to be effectively suggestive.
The real draw here remains to be SOPHIE's production, as the textures and sound design is satisfyingly reminiscent of her boundary pushing, mid-2010s output. Let Me See Ya has these strange, rushing whooshes that sound like someone is performing karate-chops with a floppy hand saw. Blaze That Ass' bassline has a tightly coiled spring to it that helps elevate its simple rhythm. As for Go Down, this instrumental is the nuttiest of the bunch. The sound of choice are these glitchy digital spasms; the exact kind of sound that would cause great concern if your computer prolonged it for more than a few seconds. This track also has my favourite beat as busy kick patterns and shakers mingle to create an intricate, danceable club rhythm.
Despite my initial reservations, I've landed on this EP being decent fun. If I have one minor critique, it's that I occasionally found myself wishing for a brief reprieve from Big Freedia's dominance, if only to let SOPHIE's brilliant instrumental environments breathe on their own. The closest the EP ever gets to this is on the opener, Let Me See Ya, where MUNA provides apt vocals during a euphoric recess. Regardless, SOPHIE's production, unsurprisingly, still sounds ahead of its time, and there's no mistaking that Big Freedia is a forceful presence on the mic. The two together are a fantastic match, and it's a shame their collaboration only yielded three tracks.