Shawn is better known as 40split—a 23-year-old DJ, producer, and visual artist based in Oakland—and his new EP I am GAY!!!!! arrives via NO BIAS just in time for Pride Month.
At only three tracks long, it’s the rare summer breeze set: twerkable yet low-key enough to get work done to. It’s the kind of music I’d gravitate toward at a festival when I need a gentle corner of the night. There’s a Porter Robinson-esque brightness throughout, softened by feminine vocals and an effortless sense of fun.
The first track, “wutever u like,” captures the restless energy of early summer. As the lyric “my bra too tight” loops over and over, it makes you wanna take something off. Meanwhile, “oh boy” and “donk” begin with dreamy indie rock riffs before morphing into something made for the dance floor.
If the EP had a smell, it would be floral perfume mixed with sweat. It’s what I’d imagine the club-baddie regular listening to while getting ready to go out: flirtatious and unmistakably Bay Area.
