This album will go down as one for the books.
The time has finally come. Nitepunk's highly anticipated debut album HUMAN has been released to the world on HARD Recs. The takeover has commenced.
I can't tell you how many times I listened to this album before I was able to find words that would even begin to do it justice.
To start, the energy and passion that flows from the very first note of this album to the very last feels larger than life. It's more than music. Nitepunk has created an entire narrative with his brilliant, idiosyncratic beats. This album and its story will pull you in from the very beginning.
HUMAN is a collection of 15 tracks that reflects years of eclectic memories, emotions and chapters in the LA based producer's life.
"I was going through a lot of different phases that all had a huge impact on me," Nitepunk said.
Photo via @nitepunk
Nitepunk was already a star playing shows in his home country of Georgia. In 2015 he dropped everything and left on his own to the states in hopes of being surrounded by people who shared a similar mindset.
After moving to Brooklyn, NY and working different jobs to support his pursuit for a career in music, Nitepunk was finally booked to play Ultra 2020. This festival was ultimately cancelled due to the outbreak of COVID-19, and he was then faced with the setbacks of being a rising artist amidst a global pandemic.
There was a feeling that everything he worked so hard for was being ripped away, but he fought his way back.
"The years of sacrifices and dedication made me write so much new music and ideas," Nitepunk explained. "I pretty much have an entire arsenal of my life in my projects folder."
Nitepunk wanted to present a project that had a balance of expressive music to portray his message, as well as dope songs that are just fun to listen to. By pulling tracks from his arsenal to match this vision, his debut album HUMAN was born.
Grounded, which was first released as a single in January of 2022, is the first song on this album. Putting this heavy, in-your-face track as the opener seems to be Nitepunk's way of busting down our doors to let us know he's here.
Nitepunk @ No Expectations, San Diego 8/13/22. Video by @still.squill
The second track on HUMAN is Hyperdust. It's from this song that Nitepunk feels the album really begins, as it's a tune that hasn't been released until now.
While Hyperdust and the succeeding track I Know That You Know (a collaboration with producing duo X&G) don't carry as much of a deep meaning as some of the other songs on HUMAN, they set the tone for what's to come. These songs slide in to establish a sense of passion, sexiness and swag that you'll continue to feel as the album progresses.
Photo by @c.2.h.2
From here, we enter familiar territory again.
These next three tracks are absolute bangers that were previously released as singles and were written in the middle of the pandemic.
Nitepunk explained how MTV was written in response to the chaos overwhelming the world and how it almost felt as if we were living in a TV show. Flow and Point (a collaboration with Habstrakt) bring a fun, careless vibe that we all need sometimes to stay sane amidst the chaos. These are the catchy, high-energy tunes that just make you want to get up and move.
The next run of songs, including Spider (ft. Tída), I'm Not Yours and You're Not Mine (ft. Yianna), Too Hot To Touch and Miracle introduces a new phase of the album. Also included in this stretch of sentimental tracks is the album's interlude titled Move Ahead.
"These songs are much more personal and feel like a message to certain people in my life," Nitepunk said.
Following the interlude is Nephilim's Drama, which starts off with the sound of a crowd chanting "Lasha Kicks".
Prior to the emergence of the Nitepunk project, the young Georgian producer performed and released as Lasha Kicks. This audio was actually from a live festival back in Georgia where Lasha Kicks was closing out a set.
"I built myself up to playing festivals as Lasha Kicks in Georgia when I was really young. It was pretty easy because it's such a small country, you just had to be doing something different," Nitepunk said. The audio of him ending his set in Georgia starts off this song intentionally, as he explains how "Nephilim's Drama represents a sort of 'goodbye' to life as I knew it."
The next song, Sober, is about leaving a dark, turbulent time and "sobering up" to a better life. Nitepunk explained how after all the hurdles and tribulations, the sun started to shine again as he became more established and comfortable with his place in the states.
The final two songs, Black & Colors and Better Off (ft. Yianna), bring a graceful, passionate end to this album.
Black & Colors was released as a single in August of last year and was accompanied by an official music video, while the closing song Better Off is new to us. Both of these tracks have a more melodic, story-telling feel to them, concluding the narrative Nitepunk has so flawlessly shared with us.
It's evident even after the first listen that HUMAN is really something special. Every song has such a unique personality to it, and even parts without vocals continue to speak for themselves. This album will undoubtedly make a lasting impact not just in electronic music, but in the creative scene as a whole.
So what's next for this powerhouse producer? Things have already been off to a wild start this year.
After dropping a bomb announcing he had been recruited by one of the world's biggest talent agencies, United Talent, Nitepunk teamed up with DEF to host a release party for HUMAN. Their team took over an underground mall for a night to throw an insane party that took live events to another level.
Photo via @defineeverythingfuture
"I didn't want to use CDJs and I didn't want to mix, I just wanted to represent and celebrate my music," he said. "I made my sickest mix ever on Ableton and just wanted to play it for people."
Attendees had no idea what was in store, as this wasn't going to be a typical DJ set. It was just Nitepunk and the crowd together as one raging to a specially curated set.
Photo by @landbear
The feedback from the event confirmed that it was a huge success, enough to make Nitepunk want to transition more of his shows to be like this in the future.
"I've been thinking about doing something like this on stage more often. My talent and expression really happens when I'm creating on my computer. On CDJs, I can only challenge myself so much."
After hearing the buzz around this event, we can only hope there are more like it to come.
As far as new music goes, Nitepunk said he really wants to focus on collaborations the rest of the year. With some huge names on his roster and an upcoming remix for Imanu dropping soon, it's safe to say we can expect nothing but heat from him in the future.
Photo by @saulshotya
Make sure to sit back and fully immerse yourself when listening to Nitepunk's unparalleled debut album, because it's more than just beats and sounds. HUMAN is a world of its own, and now that it's finally out, our world as we know it is about to GET PUNKED.
Stream HUMAN now on all platforms via HARD Recs.
Follow Dubstep FBI on socials: