- Confident and romantic funk by way of classic house and disco music.
- "This is a piece dedicated to transition," dreamcastmoe, AKA Davon Bryant, said about his new After All This EP. He returns sounding more assured and direct than he ever has, protecting his energy and putting himself first. The curveball he throws on the shuffling "IOU" makes this change of pace apparent: "I owe you... no answers," he sings with an unshakeable conviction. The off-kilter delivery feels organic, almost spontaneous, as if Bryant were hearing these beats for the first time and then delivering a melodic stream of consciousness over them. Not that these are tossed-off lyrics—every word hits with passion. Take the romantic belter "My Soul Belongs 2 U," where the reverb-drenched vocal conjures the image of Bryant singing from a mountaintop. A dreamy, mellowed out ambience permeates the record, with a stately tint that makes it feel as if you're looking through a stained glass window.
Though it's only four tracks, After All This has enough breakdowns and switch-ups to fill an album. Morose chord progressions and stomping drum sections allude to a man deep in introspection but constantly in forward motion. Bryant's production here is a mesmerising and dynamic fusion of funk, jazz, soul, R&B and leftfield electronic music. The squirty synth run that leads the outro on "L Foot, Right" is an EP highlight, and it might be the grooviest slice of sound you'll hear all year. "Take your left, your right / we gon' dance tonight," he commands, but sitting still to cuts this enchanting would be nigh on impossible, anyways. His work is timeless, classic and breaks the mold all at once.
Tracklist01. Iou
02. My Soul Belongs 2 U
03. You Had Better Deliver
04. L Foot, Right