It's hard to figure out if Hudson Mohawke is into placing decoys, or if he is just so busy that it's hard to keep track of all of his projects. This week, it seemingly was the release of the cassette-only 3Pac that was his moment in the spotlight. This, following the release of mixtapes, three albums, and remixes, that would see the Scottish artist close out his year. But nope, those announcements were just throwing us off (and the tapes sold out). Today, the Scottish artist has dropped yet another single, entitled "What U Need."
"What U Need" listens as an encapsulation of 2020's beauty (vaccine! it's almost over!) and its rage (the obvious). Announced as a treat via his Lucky Me label advent calendar, HudMo clarified its origin was, like much of the music he released this year, a treasure that had been dug up from his crates. Originally a mix created specifically for a show he played at The Warehouse Project in 2011, it's an in your face clashing of elements. We're greeted with a classic element: a spotlight shining on an isolated soulful, gospel-inspired vocal, and as time progresses, the song's greatest feat, its percussive elements, are jammed to the forefront. Beautifully frenetic, the track somehow simultaneously transports us back to a world where festivals happen, in our past and our future. It's in true HudMo form, and it's mesmerizing.
Maybe this year wasn't that different, after all.
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