Ana Roxanne
and
DJ Python
first met in 2020, and gradually worked on music together throughout the COVID-19 pandemic and in between international touring once the world opened back up again. Any time they found themselves in the same city, they'd reconvene and develop ideas in a studio together. Their self-titled debut as
Natural Wonder Beauty Concept
bears hardly any resemblance to
Roxanne
's intimate, R&B-influenced ambient or
Python
's signature fusion of deep house and reggaeton. Instead, it's a curious and exploratory album that incorporates ever-mutating electronic beats, abstract neo-classical interludes, and cloudlike atmospheric textures. The glitchy rhythm of "Sword" breaks down into a static-filled crawl and everything (including the pitch of
's voice) becomes slow and sluggish, as if they both took a sedative and it kicked in at the same moment. "III" is a duet between both artists, and
comes close to
Yung Lean
or
Bladee
territory with his yearning, emo-ish voice and lyrics about all-consuming numbness. The title track (gaining the duo entry into the eponymous artist/album/song trifecta club, along with
Black Sabbath
Bad Company
) is a truly sublime atmospheric jungle tune, with
's blissful vocals riding waves of thundering breakbeats. "Driving" combines sporadic thumps and an aquatic flow of gentle synths with
's patiently paced, half-spoken reflections on solitude. The deeply melancholy "Clear" expresses a moment of extreme vulnerability to the point of being driven to tears, with the sound of actual crying emerging throughout the persistently ticking beats and glowing synths. "World Freehand Circle Drawing" feels like a sort of emotional cleanse at the end of the album, with
's clear, upfront vocals shining out over a blippy, lo-bit pulse.
is a strange, sometimes unsettling record that attempts to make sense of displacement and detachment, and it's most effective when it also provides a sense of comfort and reassurance. ~ Paul Simpson