Drawing us in with a subversive, rising bass synth, DJchookylightningfrog opens flathead with a situational narrative and the lyrics, “flathead, shot dead, my dead in the deep red, flathead said you did this, all of it, did you do it this?”. We connect with the dark techno energy and horror adjacency. The production is cerebral and shocking, cinematic and scary at first, expanding into a vibrant and hypnotic high-octane production which would be perfect for an underground rave like UNFOLD in London.
The vocal delivery is vicious and rapid. We could also imagine the track being featured in a TV show like Nine Perfect Strangers during a super psychedelic scene. What DJchookylightningfrog is creating is next level. The melodic elements that emerge feel more familiar, though the overarching concept of the track is hella unique. There is truly nothing like this out there, which probably explains our obsession.
flathead obviously has its own self-referential narrative (i.e. DJchookylightningfrog is flathead), but could equally work well in a movie like Blade, or a monster horror TV show like First Kill. There is something almost deliberately unhinged about the way the track moves between menace, absurdity and dancefloor euphoria. It’s definitely less like a conventional techno track and more like a strange little horror universe that happens to have a beat.
That unpredictability feels completely aligned with the artist’s creative philosophy. DJchookylightningfrog describes himself as “more off the scene than in the scene”. We learn that in addition to creating music, he throws parties and DJs, following his own instincts. He confesses, “I hardly ever have a plan”, adding that his creative spark transmits on the first attempt and that the lyrics remain pretty unchanged.
We particularly love the unapologetic attitude behind his approach. DJchookylightningfrog adds, “My pitch is embedded in the sounds and the lyrics.” There is no need for an elaborate explanation when the music itself is this strange, aggressive and immediate.
Ultimately, flathead is the kind of track that makes us stop and ask what the hell we just listened to, before immediately pressing play again. We are intrigued, slightly disturbed and completely entertained, which is exactly what we want from genuinely unconventional electronica.
Needless to say, we are obsessed with what DJchookylightningfrog is creating, and will be adding flathead to our New Music Spotlight playlist and our TRIPPY playlists in the future, in the meantime we will continue to explore the ever-expanding catalogue of this wonderfully unpredictable artist on SoundCloud.