Live Review: Mallrat and Allday team up for the brooding 'UFO'

MALLRAT  (aka Grace Shaw) is an artist that needs no introduction. From the humble beginnings of her innovative Uninvited EP way back in 2016, she captured the nation's hearts and ears with relatable lyrics and a knack for pop hooks. With her worldwide attention there's no better time for the young artist to pull out all the stops and show us what she's truly made of - and with her brand new single 'UFO' featuring Adelaide emcee Allday, she's done just that.

The combo of Mallrat and Allday seems like a match made in heaven. With the duo's penchant for broad and catchy instrumentals combined with introspective lyrical hooks, it's almost criminal its taken this long. 'UFO', though, shows that sometimes things are worth the wait.

'UFO' sees Mallrat tackle a darker, claustrophobic and arguably more 'real' tone. Where her earlier tracks like 'Uninvited' took an endearingly sardonic approach to youth anxieties, 'UFO' plays it almost entirely straight. Beneath heavy trap percussion and a pulsing synth progression, she sings of a nostalgic yearn to return home and recapture her childhood. The repetition of wishing a UFO to do so neatly captures the fantastical urge everyone has at some point to be whisked away by something otherworldly. Mallrat still knows how to sing what everyone's thinking - much like herself, though, that ability has matured considerably.

Allday's feature slots in so well it'd be hard to imagine the track without it. The emcee is definitely at his peak performance, not skipping a beat with his rapid fire flow, and harmonising with himself in his telltale style. While his verse is short and sweet there's definitely some of his production tricks throughout the track, although it fits so well with Mallrat's production style you might not notice at first.

'UFO' proves two things; that the pairing of Mallrat and Allday is about as perfect as everybody imagined, and that Mallrat is topping herself again and again. With each track we see her growing as an artist, becoming bolder with her production style and breaking new ground with her songwriting. With her sophomore EP In The Sky on the horizon, 2018 is sure to be the year Mallrat transcends.

IMAGE by SHE IS APHRODITE

WORDS BY MAX LEWIS

LISTEN TO MORE NEW MUSIC HERE

SEE ALSO

FEEL ‘BETTER’ WITH MALLRAT’S ENCHANTING NEW SINGLE

SEE HOW FUN IT IS TO BE ‘UNINVITED’ WITH MALLRAT’S LONG AWAITED NEW VIDEO

LET HANDSOME AND JOYRIDE TAKE YOU TO A ‘LATE NIGHT BALL GAME’