ZHU

The Nightday arrived in 2014, including Faded, Paradise Awaits and Cocaine Model. The project initially developed with relatively little public information about the performer, directing attention towards the records and their visual world. The music already supplies a recognisable identity through the relationship between the singing and the production.

Genesis Series in 2015 introduces a range of collaborations, including Automatic with AlunaGeorge and Working for It with Skrillex and THEY. The different performers provide another way to hear the same producer’s decisions, changing the character of the vocal foreground without requiring the instrumental setting to become anonymous.

The 2016 debut album includes In the Morning, Hometown Girl and the title track. In his account of the record, ZHU describes an interest in bringing psychedelic ideas into music being played in theatres, festivals and concert rooms. He also draws a practical distinction between the electronic low end and the space where live guitar, saxophone, keyboards or vocals can become more dynamic. That approach helps explain the music’s particular balance. The rhythm gives the performance a stable physical base, while other instruments can alter the emotional atmosphere around it. A studio recording can retain intricate detail, but a live arrangement has to decide which sounds should carry the room. The early catalogue becomes more revealing when heard through those choices: the apparent smoothness is supported by a careful selection of what to include, what to withhold and where the next sound should enter.