Malaa – Illicit [EP]

It has been a year since mysterious entity Malaa broke onto the dance music scene with one question on everyone’s minds: ‘Who is Malaa?’ The French producer/DJ who made a massive debut with his nasty remix of Major Lazer and DJ Snake‘s worldwide hit ‘Lean On’ has earned a well deserved name in the festival circuit and amongst the masses. Known for his gangster influenced take on house music, the man behind the mask has often been speculated as one of the acts from the illustrious Pardon My French crew which consists of acts like DJ Snake, Tchami and Mercer.

While the mystery continues to bother many, his music continues to take the front seat and as we shift our focus back to it, the gangster has released his debut EP ‘Illicit’ via his French compatriot Tchami‘s Confession imprint. A solid 4 track effort which further cements his position as a prominent talent, it hits and misses multiple times throughout the journey but ultimately succeeds at winning the listener’s vote.

The EP kicks off saying “You can listen to this shit at the club, and then go rob a bank afterwards.” Aptly so, the intro mentally prepares you for the tension and chaos set to ensue in the next 15 minutes. Next up is ‘Diamonds’, the first single off the EP employs a catchy hip-hop vocal hook for an infectiously minimal yet ruthless bassline driven tune.

From here on, the French act plays on his strengths and channels his creative energy into the last two pieces, ‘Frequency 75‘ and ‘Danger’ which boast of extremely filthy and wonky basslines are his most vivid expressions on the entire EP and display G-house and bass house sounds.

A noteworthy EP debut by the engimatic talent, Malaa certainly has the capability to do much more and with such a strong finish to the entire proceedings, you absolutely can’t sign him off just yet. Stream the EP below and grab your copy here via iTunes.