Reggae – while it deserves all the respect in the world, it also deserves the courtesy of being left alone. Not in the case of Major Lazer. Their latest work of (albeit, abstract) art is a fusion of, quite frankly, far too many sounds for the average ear to comprehend – but somehow it works, in a similar way to Candy Crush. You’re addicted to solving it, even if at times you get frustrated because you can’t unlock the next level. While ‘Sound Bang’ – which was left out of the official Soundcloud preview, below – is definitely on a level of some sort, it’s not quite ‘next level’.
‘Sound Bang’ brings reggae into the twenty-first century, and although many of us may dispute that it doesn’t belong here, Diplo disagrees (and he makes a pretty good argument). ‘Sound Bang’ is what would happen if Knife Party made Moombahton – it may be one small stomp on history, but it is certainly one giant leap for EDM. This track starts off like an innocent mash up of Bruno Mars’ ‘Lazy Song’, but drops quite unexpectedly into what can only be described as the most aggressive break down in reggae history.
‘Sound Bang’ is without a doubt the most agreeable track on the EP, and is an official track of Trinidad’s Soca Carnival 2014. Watching the live performance puts the song in a completely different context; it’s less “EDM-meets-Trinidad” and more “Trinidad-makes-EDM”. ‘Apocalypse Soon’ boasts collaborations with Pharrell and Sean Paul – a juxtaposition we’d rather they left out of it to be honest. We’re just not used to Pharrell talking like an upper class Rastafarian, and the onomatopoeic “bams” and “clangs” make it sound like a Missy Elliot track on half-speed.
While Sean Paul’s vocals are far more suited to Major Lazer’s character, the pronunciation of “Girl Come On To Me” bear a shocking resemblance to that of Arnold Schwarzenegger in Predator (just when you thought you couldn’t take Sean Paul any less seriously).
Overall, ‘Apocalypse Soon’ has some good samples and is not too far a cry from their previous releases. The best thing to come from this EP will undoubtedly be the trap remixes that follow…
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