Angel-Ho will release her new EP, ‘Alla Prima’, this week on Hyperdub.
It follows the South African artist’s 2019 debut LP on the label, ‘Death Becomes Her’, and a self-released follow up from March this year, ‘Woman Call’.
‘Alla Prima’ – meaning ‘first attempt’ in Italian – is named after a painting technique where oil paints are layered over one another before any drying has occurred, hence “embracing the unpredictability of the mix”. That technique plays into the EP, with Angel-Ho’s vocals being recorded as one-take freestyles. Production on the EP, a lucid, experimental manipulation of hip-hop, pop and club music, comes from London duo Bon, whose previous collaborators include Kojey Radical and Mykki Blanco.
Lyrics throughout the EP confront topics such as sex positivity, the Black Trans Lives Matter movement and trans mythology. '’As I was going through some of the darkest times in my life, the music I made allowed me to continue making art and became an escape for myself,” says Angel-Ho of the release. “It’s music to transport you to a higher frequency and dimension.”
You can hear ‘Never Ever’, a hard-hitting example the sound Angel-Ho has coined as "hip-hop haute couture”, below.
‘Alla Prima’ is out tomorrow, 25th September. You can buy it here.