After their great collaborations with Oklou in ‘Harvest Sky’, umru in ‘Poplife’ or Yaeji in ‘Booboo2’, it is time for Underscores to take a step forward. Her third album, ‘U’, will be the one that makes her known to a wider audience, as it is the most openly pop of all her releases. You will remember, for example, that ‘Do It’ was practically a tribute to Britney, Justin and Madonna, circa 2008.
‘Music’ arrived first, in all its EDM and hyperpop glory, and the third official single ahead of the album’s release has been another crazy banger. We’re talking about ‘Tell Me (U Want It)’, with which we announced what will be the Album of the Week.
In ‘U’ we find fascinating tributes to Imogen Heap (‘The Peace’) or the R&B pop of the 2000s (‘Wish U Well’), but Tell Me (U Want It) is simultaneously an evolution and a return to the roots, presenting a totally original mix of EDM, dance, hyperpop and brostep.
‘Tell Me (U Want It)’ goes from Indian percussion to Oklou’s hyperpop in seconds and then the chorus drifts into the synthetic power of Skrillex, one of Underscores’ crucial influences.
However, the proposal of ‘Tell Me (U Want It)’ also evokes an outstanding pop technique; condensing and decompressing as he decides: each rhythmic slide, instrumental or vocal hook, disruption of structure or layer of vocal autotune, everything sounds millimetered but at the same time results in an accessible pop song. Little pop music sounds as 21st century as this.
This stylistic vacillation is also reflected in the lyrics of ‘Tell Me (U Want It)’, which is still a song about the insecurity produced by the uncertainty of not knowing if the other person likes you, and about the death of desire when it materializes: “I get what I want and then… I don’t even want it,” sings the artist. The controlled chaos of the production could not be more suitable for the message that the song hides.
