For Fans Of - Hana Vu, yeule, Tirzah, Yves Tumor, Mitski, Westerman.

Debut full-length from Hong Kong British artist Eva Liu, co-produced with Luciano Rossi.

Liu & Rossi are both members of the UK indie rock group, Dama Scout

As mui zyu, Hong Kong British artist Eva Liu navigates the tricky territory of ever-changing identity, merging fantasy and folklore to create a stage for self-acceptance and deliverance.

On her debut full-length Rotten Bun for an Eggless Century, Liu utilizes chopped-up soundscapes, delicate industrial ambience and sweet pop melodies to introduce a character a guide who can be stretched across worlds to offer the catharsis of patience, perseverance and understanding. This isn’t a character formed from a desire to escape or flee the real world, but rather a way to submerge even deeper into ourselves. Rotten Bun for an Eggless Century is a reflection of everyone, and everything, that made us who we are.

On her 2021 a wonderful thing vomits, Liu was praised for her seamless integration of darkened, often ominous instrumentation and pillowy-soft vocals. As the front person of UK indie-rock trio Dama Scout, Liu effortlessly navigates a disorientating genre-bending sonic landscape with a playful, gentle dexterity. Now, with the help of Dama Scout bandmate Luciano Rossi as co-producer, Liu’s first solo full-length builds upon these previous worlds to form a blossoming, more upbeat patchwork of lo-fi percussion, poignant lyricism and oddly alluring arrangements.

The writing process of Rotten Bun for an Eggless Century prompted Liu to explore more of her Hong Kong heritage, allowing a space for acceptance and celebration. “I am Chinese and I am owning it,” she explains. “Before, I would resent it. I tried doing things that would make me like less Chinese somehow.” As the album began to take shape, Liu read the traditional Chinese folklore writings of Pu Songling and joined local East and Southeast Asian groups. It opened a portal into a new self, where Liu could blend her love of video games and film scores with traditional Chinese instruments.

TRACK LISTING

1. Rotten Bun
2. Ghost With A Peach Skin
3. Hotel Mini Soap
4. Mother’s Tongue
5. Dusty
6. Ho Bao Daan (Interlude)
7. Demon 01
8. Dancing For Drinks
9. Talk To Death
10. Paw Paw
11. Eggless Century
12. Sore Bear

S. Raekwon, born Steven Raekwon Reynolds on July 10, 1995, is a singer / songwriter and producer from New York City by way of Buffalo, NY. The S. Raekwon project finds Reynolds documenting traces of a life both affected and infatuated by the power of difference. Reynolds’ journey began as a biracial Black boy in working-class Buffalo. He never met his father and grew up with a white mother who loved musical theatre and playing piano. He didn’t cut his teeth via a DIY scene, or in bands with neighbors and classmates; the isolation gave him space to channel his guarded nature into a freedom forged by the noises in his head. After graduating from Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, Reynolds moved to the East Village in NYC, an area he’s been fascinated by since family trips as a teenager. In Spring 2018, as he worked a day job and sought connections with others, Reynolds wrote and tracked the first S. Raekwon demos in his dingy studio apartment.

Rather than self-releasing, Reynolds shopped the demos around, leading to the release of his 2020 debut single "Parts Towards Whole" b/w "A Crow’s Smile" via Saddle Creek’s Document Series. Recorded between New York City and a six-month stint at his girlfriend’s parents’ home in Edwardsville, IL during the pandemic, "Where I’m at Now" is the album S. Raekwon made for himself with a clarity that arrived as he located his missing pieces in the world. Delicate as his approach may be, chaos truly underscored the two working years as Reynolds not only moved to lift the weight of the world off his spirit but connected with his roots. In a serendipitous turn of fate, Edwardsville was not only the same town Reynolds’ father once went to college but is also in close proximity to St. Louis where most of Reynolds’ Black family members are located. When he didn’t work on music, he protested against police violence in Missouri, and eventually reconnected with this family for the first time since his childhood. Upon leaving Edwardsville in September 2020, Reynolds quickly finished the rest of the album, charged by a new fire in his spirit and the light of his blood driving him towards a new beginning. Completely self-produced and self-recorded (save for drums on two songs,) the music’s driven by the relentlessness of the East Village and the quiet serenity of Edwardsville. The abstractions of his earlier musings transform into a warm wave of genreless coherence, drawing influences from across R&B, rock, folk, and pop to build a record that shines in its quiet spaces as much as its sweeping movements.

”Darling” is awash in Phil Collins-y guitar licks, angelic harmonies, a gleaming, pulsating synth line. It builds to a point that’s almost overwhelming until, in its final moments, everything drops away. Never overstaying its welcome, it’s an appealing exercise in romantic restraint.

STAFF COMMENTS

Barry says: S. Raekwon forms beautiful synthy melodies imbued with a psychedelic sensibility and outsider pop influence, all topped with his wonderfully effective vocals and off-piste production elements. It's a heady and exciting mixture, and one that surprises at every turn.

TRACK LISTING

1 Darling
2 Do You Feel The Same?
3 Kissing Behind Your House
4 Anywhere 4 U
5 It's No Thing 6 T.D.T.K.A.
7 After The Party
8 Forever
9 Darling (Reprise)
10 Don't Leave