Shygirl - “BB”

SXSW 2020 - OEB Score: 8; Popularity Index: 6

Pairs Well With…Haiku Hands, M.I.A., Junglepussy

Subversive electronic pop artist Shygirl presents an explosion of creativity in her music, deeply explorative and sweat-drenched dance music beamed from a dystopian future we are already living in. Thick, textured beats pulse through Shygirl’s singles and 2018 EP Cruel Practice, either in dream-like space or hitting like bass jackhammers depending on the mood the London-based artist is achieving. Digital melodies and samples bleep and boop with equal intensity, quirky synth sounds tapping in a gripping trance. Vocally, Shygirl moves from mysterious whispers to confident rapping, understated even in its intensest moments to join the visceral waves of sound bubbling in her music. While deeply psychedelic and heady, Shygirl’s sound is weirdly fun, lacking inhibitions and performed with a knowing confidence of living within one’s own art. Look for Shygirl to be everywhere during SXSW - the exciting, emerging artist has four official showcases already on the books and that’s probably just the start to share these fascinating otherworldly earworms. (Kevin McStravick)