Most electronic acts get their start from a feature, remix or mix, but Yaeji seemed to capitalize on her originals foremost. Her evocative, breathy and simple style of house music is reminiscent of many genres of preceding electronic dance, which blend together very well, but in combination with her vocals it makes for something a little more special on her newest Yeaji EP.
Yaeji Lee’s lyricism is confident under the veil of artful diction. Opener “Noonside” recalls her journey across the Korean border, switching between journal-esque descriptions in english and the chorus in Korean. This is complimented by easy atmospheric production to a four-four rhythm that builds mildly from start to finish. Sonic textures remind of artists like Lxury, or Jeremy Greenspan on work with Jessy Lanza – a beautiful, unadorned style which only speaks for itself. Yaeji’s spoken-word, deadpan vocals on “Feel It Out” sound like the younger, depressed version of Little Dragon’s Yukimi Nagano, but to an overall major chord progression it makes for forward and interesting music. The punctuation to this is her cover of Mall Grab’s “Guap” which only echoes her day in dance.
Whether this is a small part of the wave that is the contemporary “lo-fi house” for it’s simplistic nature, or perhaps the young, surprising work of an experimenting musician, Yaeji and her work with house music has a significant payoff on her Yaeji EP. Five songs and 20 minutes of varied, pensive electronic is a comfortable and introspective tune – a collection which Yaeji should be proud to own. Her work with GODMODE’s Nick Sylvester have created an opaquely-airy realm of dance which is soft and enjoyable and an effort which has now put Yaeji under watch as a new favorite.