"On the follow-up to the twice Grammy-nominated The Collective, Gordon has doubled-down on everything. The dozen tracks apply hip-hop's pickpocketed beats, punk's abuse of equipment and IDM's itchy, digital abrasion to her vocal performances, making for a tightly wound listening experience so epileptic that all the hyperpop kids should sell their laptops and matriculate to trade schools."
"At any given moment, Gordon's sing-speak Sprechgesang of catchphrases, commands, Post-It note poetry and cultural keywords ("Bye Bye 25!") comes off clipped, desperate, laconic, near-death, dominating, erotic, craven, jaded, resigned, empowered. Captivating. The most remotely linear moment here, "Not Today," feels like a fractured love song with an implied fatalist ending."
"Gordon and producer Justin Raisen are the architects of a twitching underworld where the buildings are made of cascading scrolls of zeroes and ones, the dirt and grime glimmers with powdered glass and Alan Vega's profile is printed on all the city's money."
Kim Gordon's album PLAY ME represents a significant escalation of experimental sonic techniques from her previous work The Collective. The record merges hip-hop's sampled beats, punk's instrumental distortion, and IDM's digital abrasion with Gordon's distinctive vocal delivery. Her sing-speak style employs fragmented catchphrases, commands, and cultural references delivered with varying emotional intensities—from desperate to empowered. Working with producer Justin Raisen, Gordon constructs a disorienting sonic landscape that challenges conventional music structures. The album's most accessible track, "Not Today," maintains experimental qualities while suggesting narrative elements. Gordon's approach deliberately resists mainstream accessibility, embracing avant-garde principles that prioritize artistic vision over listener comfort.
#experimental-music #avant-garde-production #electronic-music #vocal-performance #digital-aesthetics
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