Los Angeles electronic artist Stout Cortez likes to inhabit the periphery of various genres. And it’s here on this fringe that he creates music in a roiling cauldron of influences and personal musical affinity. Having the ability to ignore musical boundaries and construct dense and often cacophonous streaks of synth-addled rhythms, Stout Cortez revels in this freedom of movement. And while the term “psychedelic” has become something of a misnomer recently, with it routinely being applied to any band that happens to have more just the usual guitar/bass/drum setup or a particularly dense guitar sound, Stout Cortez earns the label through his use of swirling synths, perforated percussion, and immersive soundscapes. All of these examples are on full display on his latest EP, Where Are U Going?, out now on Le Risque Records.
On his latest single, the vibrant, synth-driven “Live Forever,” Stout Cortez opens the valves and lets everything pour out across the song. Hazy streaks of synths coalesce around thudding percussion that wouldn’t have sounded out of place on the last Panda Bear record. The track walks a fine line between sounding inclusive and intimate one moment and explosive and jagged the next – though it never feels stand-offish. This is music that wants to be listened to, to be absorbed and welcomed. Evocative of night time introspection and examination, Stout Cortez’s vocals veer back and forth between spoken word interludes and sing-song cadences, with the music always there threatening to swallow up everything around it. And so it’s easy to get lost in the various hues and textures of “Live Forever” and maybe that’s the best way to experience the music – to allow it to fill in all the empty space around you and settle into all the recesses of your subconscious. And after some time has passed, you’ll find that you practically breathe out a bright synth euphoria.
Beats Per Minute is pleased to premiere the latest single, “Live Forever,” from Stout Cortez’s recent EP, Where Are U Going?.
