Sofi Tukker - Soft Animals

Sofi Tukker
Soft Animals EP
2016
Spotify

Sofi Tukker have a hold on tropical house that very few people do. They are able to take it from being just a beach vibe out session and elevate it to an all out disco experience. This New York male female duo, which there seems to be a ton of right now, are on the verge of electropop but instead take a much more House-centric approach. There are flashes of Marian Hill, HOLY CHILD, Parvo Stelar and the list can go on and on. They basically have taken all these moments from electronic music that have created movements and put them into their own very unique but very recognizable sound. the songs work so well because they act both as dance tracks that could be put into any DJ set right now, or as great little pop tunes that you can jam out to with your friends. There is also a very distinct afro-centric sound that comes out of these tracks as well, taking the rhythms of Africa and build from there. "Hey Lion" is the track that is the clearest example of this as it bounces from line to line of insults slung by singer Sophie Hawley-Weld. It's a powerful song in it's own right, but the lyrics make it all the better and Hawley-Weld takes down "The Lion".

As EPs go Soft Animals is just about right. Enough of a taste to get you hooked but not to much to be able to figure out the exact direction a new album would go. Sofi Tukker have already opened for M83 on some tour dates and are rapidly approaching the mainstream. however their sound is not bowing down to those pressures. Most of Soft Animals is sultry creating a slow burn rather than a huge blaze. It really does keep you around to figure out what is coming next, to find out just where this music really can go. "Deja Vu Affair" is probably the most progressive on the album layering track upon track until you get to that oh so satisfying symbol clap beat. What Sofi Tukker do best on Soft Animals is not disappoint. Everything that they set up the come through on and thus "Deja Vu Affair" ends up being this almost opus of a track. Soft Animals is a really great start, but now we have to see where it goes. Will Sofi Tukker continue to come through on their musical promises? I think so.

8.0 out of 10