Currently Digging: Star Slinger
Pitchfork has called him “Dilla-esque,” and that certainly is apt, but UK beat-maker Darren aka Star Slinger has more in his repertoire than just hip-hop. The influences of shoegaze, soul, funk, 80’s dream pop, and occasionally chillwave creep up in his beat-skipping tracks. All in all, it’s hard to describe the sound of this Manchester resident, who began making music at the age of 14 after building his own computer specifically to produce beats.
Released in June, Volume 1, his first compilation, is a mix-and-match of all of the aforementioned styles – a wide, diverse serving of clipped, familiar samples, infectious melodies, and overpowering bass. You can grab it at his Bandcamp site for free, as well as other mashups, remixes, and singles he has incessantly churned out this summer, all of which are highly recommended and pretty phenomenal.
Listen to a sampling below for a taste. These are a few of my favorite Star Slinger tracks thus far.
