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Live Review: Empress Of 'How Do You Do It' & 'Standard'

11 September 2015 | 11:57 am | Tom Hutchins

Her debut LP as EMPRESS OF, entitled Me, is out today. Whilst you can get it now, we wanted to briefly talk about a couple of choice cuts from it.

HAPPY RELEASE DAY TO LORELY RODRIGUEZ. Her debut LP as EMPRESS OF, entitled Me, is out today. Whilst you can get your mitts on the whole thing now, we wanted to briefly talk about a couple of choice cuts from it.

First off the bat is 'How Do You Do It', a dangerously dark yet catchy dance tune. Instrumentally and structurally on first listen the track feels a bit disjointed and jarring - but it honestly doesn't take long to become entranced by it. Rodriguez's vocals soar in and out like a poetic monologue, yet it's set to this layered percussive beat. It's got so many intricate details that emerge the more you listen and that synth line in the chorus is completely dumbfounding. How can that even work so well?

'Standard' actually is the lead in to 'How Do You Do It' on the LP, and is a much more downtempo affair, working in a much more emotive R&B soundscape. In saying that, there are still jarring parts and incredible percussive elements that normally would make no sense in this kind of track - and yet they do. It's evidence of a great songwriting mind at work, as Rodriguez is taking elements from so many different genres et al and moulding them together in a completely intoxicating way.

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Speaking of writing, one of the strongest elements of the Empress Of project is the self-reflective, personal and deep lyrical content for music that could easily get pumped out by any DJ in any club. And although each song seems to be quite personal, they are easily accessible to anyone who's human. 'Standard' focuses on greed and longing, whilst 'How Do You Do It' revolves around relationships where you lose a piece of yourself.

2015 has been longing for someone who can produce powerful statements wrapped within original and experimental sounds - and Empress Of is that artist.

Me is out September 11 (today) via XL Recordings/Terrible Records. Listen to it in full at Hype Machine.

Words by Tom Hutchins

Photo Credit: Rose Marie Cromwell

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