Damien Zala Second Life EP

Introducing Damien Zala… the next promising young Frenchman to release on Hold Youth. Although relatively unknown, his first album ‘Lonely Happiness’ received strong support from Theo Parrish, Norm Talley and Luke Hess amongst others. Combining analogue synths and drum-machines with acoustic elements and samples from old records, the trained sound engineer is a rigorous technician aiming to create sophisticated deep house atmospheres. Hold Youth provide a breeding ground for open-minded and innovative music, and Zala’s Second Life EP ticks all the right boxes. Exploring sounds from a broad spectrum, ‘Ms Blue’ is the moody opener that creates a melange of raw minimal jazz, while the B side continues in this vein with more of an obvious off-key German micro house influence. ‘Considered Done’ references the late Herbie Hancock, sampling his voice over a flowing piano melody and punchy bass line, while ‘Tribute to Willy Simon’ goes all out funky, full of brass, with a classic Hip Hop swagger.