ZHU Genesis Series Review: Spoiler Its Awesome
Were you living under a rock? PERFECT, its probably got some sensuous, dark or dimmed lighting under there and the new ZHU album “Genesis Series” just came out. You should probably invite some people over to your rock to listen to this new ZHU masterpiece, a six track collection of post downtempo hiphop production mastery that is guaranteed to make you 100% cooler. I mean seriously, did you even check the collabs on this album? It’s got ZHU… and BONE THUGS-N-HARMONY. And if you’re a dubstep obsessed 13y/o boy or you have ultimate respect for hyperproduction techniques you won’t miss the SKRILLEX COLLAB. You thought the 90’s were gone? They’re fresher than ever and ZHU is making you freak out about it. This album is on an entirely different level from anything out there currently and you’ll need a listen with full, studio headphones to catch the nuances that drive the deliciously satisfying umami bass and signature pop perfect falsetto. You should obsess.
There Can Be Only One ZHU
After now-legendary LA music producer Steven Zhu erased a lifetime catalog of work and transcended in to deification as ZHU his initial album, “The Nightday” became a landmark piece of modern electronic and modern hiphop. His relentlessly technical production skills and preternatural, almost Michael Jackson-esque, understanding of pop hooks did the impossible: bridged the gap between electronic and hiphop. Skipping the transposed vocal clips and kick ducked house synth builds that defined the Summer of Downtempo ZHU didn’t iterate on the next popular genre of electronic but started defining an entire sound entirely. And its back, better, and stronger on “Genesis Series”. The flawless production quality and originality of “The Nightday” made a ZHU sophomore release an incredibly daunting task artistically. Nothing less than a supernaturally talented producer could have been able to maintain the focus and attention to detail required for the sound you hear on “Genesis Series”.
Hyperproduction is Here to Stay
There’s an almost symbolic message that the final track on this album, “Working For It” is a collab between ZHU and Skrillex. Skrillex is probably the most recently well known hyperproducer with a signature sound. The Skrillex sound is known for nearly feral use of multilayered clips, overtuffed sound spectrums, memetic lyrics, hard drops, and frenetically savage approach to vocal transposing. ZHU is none of that with his flawless focus on ultra smooth, reductionist, downtempo hiphop and yet the ZHU sound requires the same, if not more, technically rigorous levels of production. A collab between ZHU and Skrillex is like a collab between a velvet couch in the back of a dark club and a hail of razor wire under a strobe light. And yet “Working For It” is a seamless melding of the two like something you’d see at an underground fashion collective. This isn’t an accident, ZHU doesn’t do accidents, this was done with a purpose. If these two wildly different sounds requiring disparate forms of hyperproduction can be sewn together it means hyperproduction isn’t just a way to get a niche sound specialization anymore. ZHU and Skrillex just fired a massive warning flare to every artist producer: hyperproduction just became part of every day music creation.
Hold Up Wait a Minute… I Know That Hook
I’m not exactly sure was the message is with ZHU’s… liberal… use of hooks. Is it even legal? Probably, but wow, its relentless. From 90’s hip hop to Led Zepplin you’ll get what I can only assume is the legally safe version of just about every catchy hook ever. BUT WAIT. Its not actually those hooks! Its nearly maddening chasing down every sound, you’ll find yourself listening over and listening to hear exactly where you remember that pattern from. But its never an actual copy! The track “Testarossa Music” will drive you nuts opening lines lyrically similar to the original hook. Finding the “Billie Jean” hook is like searching for Waldo. Its a head spinning sensation and it showcases just how on top of the entire music industry ZHU really is if he is able to confidently navigate the treacherous copyright waters that recently swirled around Pharrell backed “Blurred Lines”.
You Just Said Umami Bass. How Do I Hear Umami Bass on “Genesis Series”?
How else would you describe the bass on “Genesis Series”? Its both perfectly light and yet entirely filling. Its not overpowering but even a basshead could be satisfied with how rich and smooth it is. There’s only one flavor to describe “satisfaction” and that’s umami, somehow ZHU channels that through his bass clips. That’s not the only place to hear his incredible ear. The truth is to really hear ZHU’s “Genesis Series” you need to listen it on studio quality headphones or studio monitor speakers. There are nuances on this album that won’t come through the airwaves overtly on a normal rig or anything with poor sound balancing. His masterful attention to detail is what drives the underlying sense of completion with every phrase, transition, and track. You feel it without headphones, but with the right headphones on you can distinctly notice what is making you feel that way. You know as a studio head ZHU spent hours and hours and hours agonizing over each and every sound on the best and most nuanced gear money can buy. You don’t wear sunglasses at an art gallery so you shouldn’t listen to ZHU on rusty tin cans.
TL;DR
You need to be careful with this album, ZHU’s “Genesis Series” is a hyperproduced pharmacological grade aphrodisiac brought back from a sensuous future of 90’s hiphop, wailing guitars, and yes even zydeco trumpet and rap. It is not to be taken lightly.