Live Review: PREMIERE: KYA's 'n e o n' mixtape details the experiences of a night out
We love an RnB queen! Making tunes up on the Gold Coast is singer/songwriter/producer KYA, who today is celebrating the release of her debut mixtape n e o n, which we're premiering here at Purple Sneakers today!
n e o n is the beginning of a mixtape trilogy she's working on and set to release titled 'lumière'. Each mixtape in this series will represent a different experience over the course of a weekend out on the town. This first instalment explores interactions with the protagonist and the audience, all going on between the hours of 9pm and 3am on a Saturday night/Sunday morning.
Later down the line, we can expect the follow up mixtapes to include 'Indancescent', an exploration of bedroom dialogue with a lover and 'Fluorescent', the morning after where nothing is hidden under fluorescent light anymore.
The five-track mixtape combines her RnB vocals with a variety of different electronic moods and sounds. The production on the mixtape kicks off with a light instrumental that allows for the weight of her voice to really pull through on this one. 'noFun' is a moody belter, and really gives us insight into what we're in for on the mixtape.
'bnce' is filled with dancefloor moments designed to get you moving. There's a dancehall beat to this one, and as the name suggests, KYA really wants you to 'bounce'. 'Cuts' takes another sound yet again, injecting trap-hats with moody instrumentals and pairing this with her downtempo, lower octave vocal line.
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'hazmat' is the emotional banger of the record, pushing her vocals to the limits and doing so over a clubby, bass heavy sound.
We're left with 'poolside', one that feels like a real summation of the themes and sounds explored on the mixtape. There's that classic RnB sound she's projected onto this one, as well as moody synths, a soft breakbeat and a delicate piano line fading in and out of focus too.
n e o n is an exciting breakout from KYA, and as the first part to an already prepared triptych, we're excited to see what's coming next.
Photo via Facebook
Words by CAITLIN MEDCALF
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