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Albums

Faze

Bonzai

2016

Faze

Release Date:  2016

By Pitchfork

Reviewed April 6, 2016

Not since Nicki's verse on "Monster" has one song contained such wicked split personalities. On "Faze," the 19-year-old Indiana-born, Dublin-raised, London-schooled producer Bonzai flips between teeth-bared attack mode as terrifying as Azealia Banks or Lady Leshurr at their hardest ("farewell to you, my friend"), and incredibly controlled harmonies, which stretch out and flinch as she offers comfort to a tired and worn lover. (She's previously sung back-up for Nao.)

"I'll cover up any marks or bruising," she offers tenderly, though you'd be right to question her intentions. "Faze" matches her unnerving come-on with a similarly disorienting, dangerous setting, like a post-apocalyptic revamp of Tweet's "Oops (Oh My)." The sound design is incredible—all deep, ricocheting bass, tense sonar blips, and flurries of hard-edged percussion that sputter and burst as if they were malfunctioning. Bonzai might turn on a knife-edge, but there's no doubting the precision of her aim.

8:00 PM · Apr 6, 2016