Hats off to Epicure – for a label only established last year, they’ve just taken a step that signals a knack for curation to rival the best of electronic music’s rising boutique collectives. That notion comes to fruition on LOKI and Avedo’s new collaboration “LOVIN’ U”, an impeccable dive into synth-soaked romantics with sleek production stylings and a soulful vocal performance to match (not to mention what’s one of my favorite pieces of album artwork in recent memory). It’s a thorough, well-rounded release that serves as a prime example of a precise vision being executed by an organic, impassioned group of creatives.
A quick aside: I’m a cynic when it comes to technology in the context of capitalism – so often it ranges from coercively reinforcing systematic standards to downright exploitation. That leaves me worried about the increasingly centralized power of multi-national gatekeepers like Spotify over the distribution of music, but then I remember the innovation of artists and industry players as they push boundaries in the present that will lead to new avenues of delivering their music to listeners in new forms and fashions we’ve yet to consider. A recently realized label like Epicure that’s beginning to establish a recognizable identity and vision beyond a traditional label structure gives me hope for the future.
[soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/340864271″ params=”color=#ff5500&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false” width=”100%” height=”166″ iframe=”true” /]