EP Review: SG Lewis – Shivers
2 min read
Back in February, SG Lewis debuted with the chilled out deep house track Warm. By using minimal beats and relying instead on piano and some heavily distorted vocals to set up the song, it resulted in something with more depth than your usual house music. Now, seven months later, Lewis is following it up with the release of his first EP, Shivers.
In many ways, Shivers is an extension of the style Lewis covered on Warm. The songs on show are all chill deep house tracks, with a similar minimal approach in terms of beats, though there’s a different element to each of them a unique vibe. No Less replaces the piano with guitar, but otherwise operates on a very similar structure. The natural, soulful vocals of featured artist Louis Mattrs give the song a flirtatious and alluring attitude, in comparison to the robotic element the distorted vocals gave Warm.
The EP’s highlights are the instrumental tracks, rather than the vocal ones. Absent is notable for the wall of airy synths and vocal sampling that cover the song, though it’s more on par with the two vocal tracks rather than improving upon them. Lighter takes it a step further with its use of piano and synth melodies, taking the best elements of Warm and Absent to make something catchy without sacrificing its funky groove for the sake of matching the other songs.
The songs on Shivers are a little too similar to both Warm and each other for their own good, but that doesn’t mean Lewis hasn’t created something good. As his first real collection of personal material, it shows that he’s good at his niche style but doesn’t even hint at what he can do outside of it. Shivers is a good EP, but some variety may be necessary when the time comes to release something else.
