New Batsu: Half Self

Osaka’s Batsu gets reflective on Half Self. The electronic artist’s latest offers up a fragile set of tracks that often tease going over the edge, but always hold everything back, aiming for something more melancholy than moshing. Not to downplay how springy Batsu’s creations can get — check the zero-gravity “Confess,” seemingly using melodies from Hoshino Gen’s “Koi” but recasting them into something more jelly-like. Yet for most of its runtime, Half Self seems OK to look inward, or at least let its brittle pieces show. The title track rattles, but does so with a fluttery main melody, while tracks like “Love Song” and “Look Alike” find Batsu using vocal samples — sometimes sliced up, sometimes echoing on the sides — as a way to evoke something fleeting. Best of all is “Loop & Loop,” which finds Batsu dropping a Carpainter-esque garage-leaning beat, but elevated by splashes of piano and twisty vocals courtesy of Native Rapper. Get it here, or listen below.