Albums | Soulful bass tastemaker Maddy O’Neal unveils shimmering future bass single “Bliss” with producer Shylow and vocalist Britt Lari

Posted by VMan on August 24, 2023

Electro-soul queenMaddy O’Nealhas catapulted herself to the top of the bass music hierarchy. Over the past seven years, the Denver-based producer has played hundreds of shows and performed at world-class music festivals such as Coachella, Lollapalooza, Bonnaroo and Lightning In A Bottle, where she has hypnotized audiences with her hybrid DJ/drum pad live performance style. She’s also toured and collaborated with artists such as Pretty Lights, CloZee, Big Gigantic, and The Floozies, cultivating a passionate fanbase enchanted by her eclectic blend of glistening, melodic electro-soul with funky grooves and pulsating, synth-heavy basslines. 

Now, following the release of O’Neal’s critically acclaimed 2022 sophomore album Ricochet and two volumes of LP remixes, the soulful bass purveyor has been teasing her forthcoming Mind Over Matter EP, set to release Tuesday, September 19. Vibrant, diverse, and brimming with collaborations alongside other inventive artists, the four-track package will retain O’Neal’s signature feel-good bass style as it expands her sonic purview. 

Fans got their first taste of Mind Over Matter with the EP’s lead single “Free Yourself,” a luminescent, future bass fueled cut with South Florida producer/multi-instrumentalist Sofasound (who’s released music on the venerated labels bitbird and Chillhop). Next was “Woofer,” a trunk-rattling, hip-hop infused collaboration with rapper Cleva Thoughts. 

Today, Maddy O’Neal unveils the EP’s third single, “Bliss,” a collaboration with Canadian future bass producer Shylow (who in 2022 remixed O’Neal’s “Forgive Me” track for Westwood Recordings) and Los Angeles-based vocalist/multi-instrumentalist Britt Lari, who’s worked with high-profile producers such as CloZee. 

The track pairs future bass stylings and heavy 808 bass tones with sparkling vocals from Britt Lari, a combination that reflects a seamless melding of sonic worlds and a close creative chemistry between the song’s two producers and vocalist. 

“Bliss” kicks off with sweeping synths before quickly dropping into soft, ethereal vocals accompanied by a booming, pulsating bassline. The chorus then builds into a hard-hitting, cinematic drop filled to the brim with fluttering chord progressions and clapping hi-hats – a blending of sounds that pay homage to classic future bass aesthetics. 

The song’s intricate sound design is perfectly complemented by vocalist Britt Lari, whose signature pop flair adds an indelible humanist layer to the vivid electronic soundscape. Lari acutely summarizes the track’s blissful tone, with vocals echoing “Sell my heart, save my soul/Come alive, lose Control/Cause’ I belong here, I can feel the heat/Serendipity, taking Over/This is pure bliss,” catapulting the listener into a dreamy, euphoric state of mind.