ALEWYA - Panther In Mode

That Alewya was a seriously cool character became clear on December 16, 2020, the day her performance of "Falling" dropped on YouTube — a cover of a well-known Dj Kent house track: intense like Kelela, swept up in the groove like Grace Jones, brazen like M.I.A. and cool like Rihanna — just who does she think she is? Alongside her, a staggering drum performance from Moses Boyd, offering further proof that something exciting and strikingly hybrid was brewing.

A year and a handful of singles later, the young woman has put together her debut EP "Panther In Mode", released by the Anglo-French label Because, one of the most varied and interesting independent outfits of recent years. There's certainly been no shortage of accompanying videos, which craft her image with a series of outfits and moves that are nothing short of captivating, but that's part of the game too, and Alewya inhabits her own skin with an innate self-assurance.

"Falling" didn't make the tracklist, and neither did her very first single "Sweating", dated June 2020, because Alewya has already moved well beyond that point. Six new tracks over roughly twenty minutes are, for now, all she needs.

"Panther In Mode" unfurls jagged footwork rhythms, the grimy atmosphere of London bass, and an engaging post-atomic electronic production that still isn't averse to a certain radio-friendly roundness. Alewya's vocal delivery is dry, nervy, and utterly uninterested in the art of melisma and ornamentation, making it perfect for cutting through the beat like a steel blade. Far from being the work of whichever DJ happens to be in vogue with a pretty face out front, "Panther In Mode" is the jagged but well-crafted first step of someone who already seems to know exactly what she's doing.

Both the dense opening chant of "Dragon" and the possessed mantra of "Ethiopia" are packed to the brim, while "Zuggy" and "Channel High" feel almost desert-like by comparison, both cooked up as digital exaggerations of the sounds of Tinariwen and Bombino filtered through the EDM era of Zhu. "Spirit_X" is stunning: it sounds like drum'n'bass transfigured and reassembled out of bubbling keyboard blocks, the rhythm churns and twists, and Alewya floats above it without ever giving in. The ending of "Play" stages a kind of meta-reggaeton, recalling certain moments from Arca's "KiCK i" experience - once again dry and synthetic, yet always compelling.

And that's all it takes: Alewya has a fashionable sound, an instantly recognizable voice, a memorable image, and the innate charisma of an already seasoned star. At times she seems almost fragile and delicate, bending toward an utterly earthbound spirituality, only to re-emerge cockier than before. Needless to say, with such premises, expectations for a full album are sky-high.

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24/12/2021