02/07/2025

LYFE WEDNESDAY | JULY 2, 2025

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Stepping into own lane F OLLOWING the intensity of Ruin My Life and the dizzying emotional spiral of Merry Go Round , the latest EP 1 finds transforming deep-seated feelings through his music. Transitioning from his role in K-pop with the popular band Day6 as lead guitarist and vocalist, EaJ has since embarked on international tours and performing live for more than half a decade. o EaJ’s EP explores inner self, deep feelings

EaJ sharper, louder and more in tune with his inner self. Its lead single Red is a genre-bending anthem originally written for Tencent’s breakout video game Arena Breakout: Infinite and co-produced by Jorgen Odegard (Justin Bieber’s Holy ). Rounding out the EP with a moment of stillness and uplift, Pause contrasts the chaos with clarity, offering space to breathe amid the emotional storm. Following a banner year that included an Asia tour, a support slot on the Imagine Dragons trek and the release of his introspective EP When the Rain Stopped Following Me , EaJ now steps fully into his own lane. With his intimate lyrics and diverse sound, EaJ is an expert at

At the turn of 2020, EaJ began crafting his own music and set foot into solo territory, discovering and embracing his own identity as he forged a new path in his career. An open book when it comes to his mental health, EaJ’s recent single Ruin My Life , strikes a balance between the optimism and despair that comes with desire and longing as he continues to progress in the scope of his sound in an infectious electro-pop direction without losing the vulnerability that continues to resonate with his listeners. EaJ has continued to build a dedicated fanbase across Asia,

The singer touches on issues of mental health in his latest release. earning millions of streams and headlined a successful Asia tour in 2024 with shows across Manila, Jakarta, Kuala Lumpur, Singapore and Bangkok. Though based halfway across the globe, Indonesia, Philippines, Thailand, Singapore and Taiwan continue to dominate EaJ’s top 10 streaming markets worldwide.

Red is the lead single from the new EP.

ALBUM REVIEW

Draugveil’s album faces AI allegations ART exists to invoke a response, elicit a reaction and move the observer. The spectrum on where these land on does not matter, whether it provokes anger, thought, laughter or discussion. Ultimately anything is better than bland art, which is akin to a glass of milk at room temperature. In black metal, due to its anti-establishment and misanthropic nature, art in this circle only has room to incite the most extreme reaction. That said, the metal and black metal community were simply not ready for how they themselves would respond when Draugveil’s Cruel World of Dreams and Fears thatarrived last month. Ű BY MARK MATHEN VICTOR

Draugveil’s album cover. – PIC FROM METAL ARCHIVES

Released by the prominent underground music promoter Black Metal Promotion on YouTube in its entirety, the album blew up instantly not due to the music, the artiste behind it or their politics, or even the subgenre. It was the album’s cover art that Cruel World of Dreams and Fears itself is a relatively bog standard album within the subgenre, liberally taking from different generations of black metal, without actually etching an identity of its own through the music. The 10-track album bears gratuitous similarities to other projects such as the older Satanic Warmaster and newer ones such as Kristailer, Kekht Arakh, Lamp of Murmuur and even Gudsforladt. Though it is inevitable for chords, arrangements and such to be“lifted”from other projects’ albums, which Draugveil does for his debut, there is nothing in Cruel World that stands out. To make matters worse with the music lacking an identity, the lyricism goes to the other extreme end of black metal in a failed effort to replicate Kekht Arakh’s “romantic black metal”. “Forgive me Lord for all my sins / Forgive me Father, cause I’m weak / I had no time to figure out / That all I need is love” – Draugveil sings in one of the weirdest recurring passages in the album’s opener Knight Without a Name . Musically, the songs were not terrible by any means. It is uniformly good but only worth a single spin through the entire album as it is neither groundbreaking nor is it able to summon longevity from the artiste’s name shot it to infamy. Hollow imitation

alone unlike what many of the subgenre’s established acts are able to do. Shroedinger’s black metal The cover for the album is a thing of beauty and the stuff of nightmares. It just depends on the lens it is seen through. On one hand, it is brave for going against the subgenre’s norm for cover art. On the other, it can be interpreted as being too comical that Draugveil has pushed himself into the cringe corner of black metal. After the cover art summoned the hate-filled eyes of black metal fans, their ears soon followed the galloping riffs of the album. With the weight of armoured hell beasts, fans of the subgenre poured heavy scrutiny on the Czech Republic artiste’s album. What followed were the allegations that the album cover was generated by artificial intelligence (AI) and then, that the music itself was possibly also AI-generated, as the album is Draugveil’s debut, with no previous singles, EPs or demos. Artistes and albums falling out of the sky without prior history or background are usually tell-tale signs of AI. The lyrics for the songs on the album also share similar genetics to the slop AI is known to vomit out, particularly the grammar and how often the em dash symbol is used. Though AI-generated slop has not flooded the metal scene, it is prevalent in more niche subgenres such as dungeon synth, which was born from black metal. It is hard to say whether the cover or music for Draugveil’s debut is AI, but it does not change the fact that the album is, in modern slang, very “mid”.

The collaboration between M-flo, Zico and Eill is new single Eko Eko .

M-flo drops single Eko Eko CELEBRATING 25 years of innovation, genre fusion and futuristic sound, Japanese group M flo is back with its second digital single of 2025 Eko Eko . The song brings together powerhouse collaborators Zico and Eill in a dream team that transcends borders and expectations. The collaboration sparked global buzz – and for good reason. Zico, Korea’s most sought-after producer-artiste, brings a fearless musicality that aligns with M-flo’s legacy. Eill, with her signature blend of R&B, pop and vocal power, returns for her second appearance in the M-flo loves series. The result is a cross cultural anthem that is futuristic, fresh and emotionally charged.

Zico and Eill’s unique voices, creating a track that is as unpredictable as it is unforgettable. Fans can witness this collaboration come to life in a special one-take performance of Eko Eko on The First Take YouTube channel. Captured in a single, unfiltered take, it is a rare chance to experience the raw chemistry and energy of M-flo, Zico and Eill – all in one room, one moment, one shot. For Zico, this marks his first-ever collaboration with a Japanese artiste. For Eill, it is a return to the M-flo loves universe that helped propel her rising career. Together, they help usher in a new era of M-flo – one that honours their roots while pushing boundaries. With Eko Eko , M-flo proves once again why they remain at the forefront of sound innovation – 25 years strong and still evolving.

Eko Eko is already capturing attention across the globe with its fresh sound and dynamic blend of styles. It is a sonic crossover where M-flo’s next-gen soundscape meets