Trap City surfaces a lot of disposable festival trap, so I went in skeptical, and Pamex’s brainwash slapped the skepticism right out of me. This is the kind of trap that doesn’t bother with subtlety because subtlety was never the point. The 808s are tuned to rattle whatever cheap speaker you’re playing it on, and the vocal chop in the build is genuinely unsettling in the best way, like a sample warped just past the point of being recognizable. The drop is mean. There’s a half-time switch in the second half that I did not see coming and it completely re-centers the track. I love when a producer hides a second idea inside a song that already gave you what you came for. brainwash is short, loud, and gone before it overstays its welcome, which is exactly how trap this aggressive should operate. Stick it on, annoy your neighbors, apologize never.
Chrome Daydream
Chrome stars, jelly hearts and holographic colour. A nod to the glossy, optimistic graphics of the early web.