- Utterly singular Detroit house with industrial bite, featuring a whopper of an Octo Octa remix.
- It's tempting to think that Akua Grant's music is split into two distinct camps. On one side, there's the old-school Detroit beatdown of Lady Blacktronika, and on the other the pummeling industrial techno of Femanyst. But look past BPMs and this forced dichotomy begins to fall apart. On her Femanyst RA Podcast, even amidst the whiplashing percussion and weapon grade synths you could find squiggles of Midwest magic. Similarly, Grant's 2021 EP as Lady Blacktronika, Drum Control, fused jacking house with the wallop of industrial techno. On Trablonika Daly, released on Peggy Gou's Gudu label, she continues to thread a line between the analog soul of beatdown and the ferocity of nihilist hardcore techno.
The record's two best tracks, "Baby I Got It" and "Hold My Hand," nearly perfect this strange hybrid sound—vintage Detroit house underpinned by steel-toed kick drums that could work on a Paula Temple record. "Baby I Got It" in particular hits with a venomous aggression, working the MPC into overdrive while a slightly hair-raising organ melody unfolds in the final act. If "Baby I Got It" is raw power, "Hold My Hand" is her attempt at a techno horror show. Haunted vocals ping over strings, like Wata Igashari remixing the Frozen soundtrack. The other two cuts are a bit closer to classic house. Octo Octa's flip of "Hold My Hand" is a proper banger. She turns the barren original into a bold and bodily 12-minute groover with a thick bassline that cuts through the dense upper and mid frequencies. Still, though, what stands out about Trablonika Daly is just how close Grant continues to bring her two worlds into orbit with each other, outlining a sound that feels unique—a rarity in any corner of house or techno.
Tracklist01. Baby I Got It
02. Sing The Blues
03. Hold My Hand
04. Hold My Hand (Octo Octa's Sapphic Trails In Bloom Mix)