The Nostalgia You Didn’t Know You Needed: A Review of Sweetpea’s Latest Release on AKO BEATZ [AK010017]: “Silly Girls” and “Ur Love”
Sweetpea [https://www.sweetpeadnb.com] has officially been a part of the drum and bass world for just about ten years yet she has been taking this world by storm for most of it. She has held residencies with London pirate radio stations and currently has a bi- or tri-monthly residency with the legendary KoolFM, a part of RINSE. She's one of the co-founders of EQ50 [https://www.eq50.co.uk], a "collective of women working towards fairer representation within drum and bass" which launched in 2018. EQ50 offers mentorship and one-on-one collaborations with Critical Music, Function Records, Ram Records, Shogun Audio, and V Recordings. Sweetpea also uses her background in education to put together workshops for Pioneer as well as teaching and mentoring burgeoning DJs and producers.
I first heard about Sweetpea when I was digging for female dnb producers for my own mixes, and the first track of her's that I dropped was "Don't Talk Back" [Terabyte Records] in 2018. Ever since, I have been a fan and I have watched her progress as a producer with glee. She has produced songs in a variety of styles from 2023's dark and heavy "Rapture" and "Blue Beam" [Tres-2b] to this latest release, a venerable and nostalgic nod to the roots of jungle. She is truly a force to be reckoned with.
Sweetpea's latest two-track release is just out on AKO Beatz [https://akobeatz.bandcamp.com/music] and appears to be a love story with the underground days of yesteryear. Both tracks are beautifully atmospheric, whimsical, and fun, especially "Silly Girl", due to its melodic laser and space sounds and overall uplifting feel. Both "Silly Girl" and "Ur Love" remind me of being in the jungle room at underground raves in the 90s and early 2000s, and I am for it! "Silly Girl" makes me feel happy and its sunny feel reminds me of my carefree childhood summers.
Similarly, "Ur Love" has beautifully atmospheric pads which contribute to its feel of lightness, but Sweetpea throws in dark, thick Reese bass to make things interesting. The funk is strong with both tracks but they have distinctively differing breaks. This track's subtle complexities remind me of my excitement upon discovering electronic dance music. I cannot wait to drop this track on a real sound system to get the full impact of that bass! Overall, I would give this release five out of five stars.
I look forward to bearing witness to Sweetpea's musical journey because she has a diverse discography and good taste. Every release is something unique to her and will be timeless. To learn more about Sweetpea and EQ50, check out the provided links. You can pick up this release on Bandcamp: https://akobeatz.bandcamp.com/album/ako10017-sweetpea-silly-girls-ur-luv. Do not sleep on this amazing DJ, producer, and teacher!
Cheers,
Tally G
