New Artist: Psychologist
It takes a brave man to make music through minimal sound effects and the raw power of his own voice. Before James Blake took such a leap of faith at the end of last year, there was Iain Woods, the man behind Psychologist. And whilst the former basks in his critical acclaim, the latter carries on creating less recognised, yet equally magnificent music. His sound falls somewhere in between two ends of the minimalist spectrum – the bass-driven Blake and the piano-led melodies of Oupa and Perfume Genius.Recorded in a church, Waves Of OK is the first of two EPs released by Psychologist this year and, as a result, each of its five unnerving songs have a real hymnal quality. The standout is Come In Waves, which sees Woods’ voice take centre stage, so distinguishable that the piano and bassy sound effects are just an afterthought. Be sure to explore some other highlights on Psychologist’s Hype Machine page, and watch out for the second EP release later this year, which contains further electronic explorations.