brz Challenges Status Quo with Production on New EP

The latest EP, Your Favorite Abstraction!from Indianapolis/Brooklyn Rapper Elijah Pouges AKA ‘brz‘ (pronounced breeze) is a ten-minute fever dream of creative energy. Recorded in Bloomington, Brooklyn, Los Angeles and San Francisco — brz showcases how the proximity of technology and simulated imagery can impact the voice of those that tend to hold their devices quite dear. How necessary it can be to involve such modern developments into your life, whilst simultaneously understanding the frustration and crisis it can bring along.

“Your Favorite Abstraction!” artwork by Nicole Ruggiero.

Only one song is over two minutes long, being the fifth and final song, ‘Rage Alone‘. Every song on this project has incredible depth for how short they all are… combine that with lyrical prowess plus intelligent personal commentary and you have a pretty stacked track list. A track list that gives you a gut punch and grabs your attention, leaving you ready to consume all of the sonic jittering, glitching and unorthodoxy that this EP has to offer.

Even in the midst of the layers of sound, brz finds a way for his message to stand out. It appears, almost, that brz is fighting against an artificial phenomenon — as if these songs are alive and sentient. Almost like these songs are aware of brz’s issues with technology and have become his enemy. ‘Internet Friends‘ might be the best example of this, with its walls of distorted, strobing noise. Which immediately cuts into a lyrical splurge of “being saved by internet friends, again”. Divulging into the tropes of seeing people online, but ultimately not knowing what people are doing outside of their online activities. Your knowledge of people can remain… ambiguous.

Mirror‘ is a quick-spitting track that comments on “shattering the mirror” of technology, specifically your mobile device. “You just gotta pull up IRL and talk to me.” spouts brz, “You don’t know me!”. All of which is being chanted over a thick club-like bass line that demands you to get up and move. This EP does not spend a single moment being mundane, that I can promise.

During our recent photoshoot, brz mentioned the eclectic process that went into crafting this project. “The EP is really a product of patch working, having recorded it in a handful of different locations. A little bit of Indianapolis, Bloomington, Brooklyn, LA, and San Fran. It all ended up being the result of each place’s overall influence on me and whatever music I was listening to at the time. I just want to make whatever is going to be fun for me, things that will keep my attention. Songs that will get their point across quickly and efficiently.”

A creatively dispersed and honest process from an equally creative, eccentric and unique artist.

Check out brz’s custom Spotify playlist made just for his Pattern Magazine debut. Don’t forget to find brz on all available streaming platforms.

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