It’ll be a mesmerizing few months with two impending back-to-back releases by hypnotic beatmaster MNDSGN. And if “Eggs,” the first single off of July’s forthcoming Surface Outtakes tape, is any indication of what the rest of his repertoire will be like, things will definitely be going over easy. But August’s Yawn Zen LP also follows this rule, as it’s set to be a drowsy, hedonic staple stuffed with more muffled drums and gooey synths than any Spotify sexy-time playlist.
The project of LA-based musician Ringgo Ancheta, there’s a languid, almost trance-inducing quality to his warm, sensual production style, which is also very appropriate given his moniker. And it makes even more sense once one learns about his father, who worked as a neuroscientist after his family fled the Philippines due to their involvement with the Aum Supreme Truth Cult. Forced to seek political asylum on the outskirts of a New Jersey commune after a string of cult terrorist attacks in the late 1980s, Ancheta didn’t start to make beats until he hitchhiked out of the forest toward Philadelphia.
But thank high powers he did. His music sounds like the soundtrack to an art film about eggs, the whites bubbling in slow-motion. An odd comparison, but it’s definitely the best way to capture the hazy sort of mood accompanying a sticky, sidewalk-sizzling summer.
MNDSGN’s Surface Outtakes tape is out July 8 on Leaving Records. His Yawn Zen LP is out on August 26 via Stones Throw/Leaving.
