After over a decade of putting out music as a producer on various pop records for the likes of Pitbull and Lady Gaga and then solo single smashes such as "Turn Down For What," "Get Low" and "Middle," DJ Snake has put out his debut artist album Encore. The LP spares no effort in using his industry connections to bring together some of the biggest names in music such as Justin Bieber, Migos, Skrillex and Young Thug.
The album starts with a short instrumental intro and then launches into the all-too-familiar notes of "Middle" with Bipolar Sunshine. The summery, easy-going melodies settle the listener in and get them acclimated for the full album listen. However things start to oscillate from here with a wild mix of radio-friendly, dance-pop like "Sober" with JRY, one of the clear highlights of the album and "Talk," to much more jarring tracks like "Ocho Cinco" with its unrelenting hardstyle kick in the first half or the gritty "Sahara" with Skrillex.
Both heavy tracks seem like fodder for DJ Snake's festival sets this summer and for the coming months on the mainstages he has grown accustomed to.
He then hits two trio of features in the world of hip-hop, with Young Thug, Jeremih and Swizz Beats on "The Half" that is notably stronger than "Oh Me Oh My" with Travi$ Scott, Migos and G4shi. The later seems like a missed opportunity to "shut down the club" as Scott says in the song.
"Propaganda," a free release at the end of last year, finds it niche next to "Sahara" as one of the harder, more festival ready selections.
The album then finds its groove once again and finishes out strong with a second Bipolar Sunshine collaboration, the Justin Bieber collaboration "Let Me Love You" that has already gone to number one in the United States on iTunes and will probably dominate the radio soon and then a very strong closer with Mr. Hudson "Here Comes The Night."
DJ Snake has shown over the past few years that he knows a hit when he hears it. This album may not be the most cohesive bit of listening, but that is one of the great challenges facing dance artists. Despite that, DJ Snake took the opportunity to upgrade his discography with 14 more songs to flush out his festival sets and radio credibility.
Stream the album on Spotify below and pick up a copy on iTunes.
