Ever since he dropped his debut EP “Ghost” in 2014, Abe Laguna, better known by his stage name Ookay, has proven himself a versatile and relevant new musician. He produces tracks in a variety of different styles and genres including trap, future bass, progressive house and even dubstep. He consistently surprises his fans with each new release and completely subverts expectations every time with tracks like “Thief” and “Matters.” This is definitely still the case with his newest EP “Cocoon,” released Oct. 7. While the EP doesn’t stray too far from genres Ookay’s explored in the past, it still showcases his skills as a producer and how he can make completely different sounds flow well together.
Each track brings its own distinct mood and interesting instrumentation. The first cut, “Back Again,” starts off with a beautifully calming combination of strings and piano chords led on by echoed snapping. When Ookay’s signature dreamy vocals and silvery snares lead into the melodic string-driven drop, the whole track comes together in an excellent way. “Long Time” begins with a mysterious and crackly synth line, bolstered by the same dreamy vocals and deep punchy drums. All of this leads to a dark and smooth, deep house drop with vocal sample splicing that would make anyone want to groove on the dance floor.
My favorite two cuts off of the record, however, are the final two: “Bring It Back” and “Sure.” “Bring It Back” immediately caught my attention with its amazingly soulful jazz organ intro with reverb effects and soul singer vocal samples. The cut then takes an immediate left turn and contradicts itself in the best possible way by introducing a rattling and metallic trap bass drop on top of the same jazz organ progression. This is made even better as the vocals of the soul singer and some new trap vocal samples battle for attention between the lines of the drop. “Sure” is one of the most beautiful tracks I’ve heard in a long time. It’s combination of plucky shamisen chords, guiro rattles, the sounds of clinking glass and pouring liquid over the flowing lyrics and hi hat make it ideal to relax to. The track is reminiscent of iconic trip-hop music pioneered by legends like Nujabes, may he rest in beats, and Tsutchie.
Out of the five tracks, there was only one I disliked. The cut “New Jack Swing” starts off relatively well. It’s a simple house music drum and snare progression that melds into the signature wavy and guttural hum of a future bass bassline. But as the track hits its drop, it instantly flops into an unimpressive and repetitive wobble that sounds like the modulated sound of a frog being stepped on. This annoyance is backed up by some very simple and barely noticeable snares. This cut is both surprising and unsurprising. It sounds low-quality and uninspired compared to the rest of the excellent tracks but, then again, Ookay’s future bass tracks are among his weakest material.
Collectively, this second EP by Ookay is an excellent collection of his eclectic style, and the one dull and repetitive cut on the record is not enough to diminish its cumulative value. As Ookay explores more genres, I imagine he will open up a variety of new audiences to his music. Ookay is quickly becoming one of the most versatile music producers on the scene today.
