Houis (pronounced “weece”) is French-American, New York-based multi-instrumentalist, producer and visual artist, who has developed an R&B lo-fi sound with elements of indie electro pop and indie house, influenced by Bonobo and Tom Misch.
The New York-based multi-instrumentalist, producer and visual artist’s debut album Outgrown is slated for release this year through Berlin-based label Lekker Collective. The album reportedly depicts the full range of Houis’ influences, including UK garage inspired lo-fi instrumentals, 80s inspired indie pop, R&B and neo soul while featuring guest spots from Emmett Kai, Blush’ko and and others.
So far I’ve written about two of the album’s previously released singles:
- “Longtemps,” a woozy, neo-soul-like instrumental built around boom bap beats, glistening keys, reverb-drenched guitars and a funky hook. The song manages to subtly nod at J. Dilla instrumental beat tapes while evoking a desperately needed feeling of serenity in a mad, mad, mad world.
- “Can’t Explain,” a warm, intimate and dreamlike song with a trance of bittersweet melancholy built around built around glistening Rhodes and skittering boom bap paired with Foriegnlocal.’s coquettish delivery and Ushuaia‘s blasts of fluttering guitar.
Outgrown‘s latest single “Say Enough,” a slow-burning and vibey bit of lo-fi electro pop featuring fluttering and twinkling synths, skittering 3/4 beats. New York-based pop duo Couch Prints contribute achingly tender vocals expressing the sense of regret, heartache, unease and uncertainty that comes with the end of a relationship.
“The instrumentation was definitely the most experimental song on the album. It has a pop-like arrangement, while using a 3/4 beat (inspired by some Bonobo songs I’ve been listening to lately),” Houis explains. “The FX, fluttering synths, and vocal chops were also inspired by Mount Kimble’s live rendition of “Before I Move Off” on KEXP (one of my favorite songs for the past decade).’Say Enough’ walks the line between electronic and chillhop.”
“At its core, ‘Say Enough’ is a song about feeling empty,” the members of Couch Prints explain. “For us, some of the worst moments in life have not been about sadness, but about pure apathy”