Listen: Bayou – “Airlock”

Londoner Hari Ashurst, otherwise known as Bayou, picked up attention last year with a slew of understated RnB tracks with beguiling vocal hooks. On new track, “Airlock”, the gauzy atmosphere that dominated earlier output fades away instantly and shows he can make his music razor-sharp, too.

The track doesn’t give you time for an introduction, getting straight to gurgling, wonky synths that wobble violently like a stretched slinky – cutting in and out throughout. They’re backed by a harsh, demonic voice speaking in two-word bursts, as if the words are being programmed just before spoken. It makes it even more surprising when Ashurst’s softly-spoken voice jumps in for a brief interlude, completely silencing the noise, echoing “It’s too far away” over a sparse drum beat.

The experimentation with maximalism vs minimalism is what makes “Airlock” so brilliant, and the ability to startle when you least expect it to be switched up. Bayou has often been compared to Jai Paul but he doesn’t look set to drop off the radar any time soon with his mixtape, Loopback, coming out on May 12.