āMiami-based producer Big Steve Geeās latest offering, āNikki,ā off his forthcoming EP Monogamy, is a hypnotic deep-house track thatās laidback, but laced with an infectious mix of late-night warehouse stabs, twinkling piano riffs, and fuzzy bass.
From beginning to end, the track takes listeners on a journey with the titular character, Nikki, who āskips down the streets at sunset only to watch it settle beneath the horizon,ā as Gee himself describes it.
Itās a tune that inspires curiosity: like Nikki herself, the song is peripatetic, going down different paths and grooves. Just as she begins to get lost in the circular rhythms of synth jabs and treble-heavy keys, the bass starts throbbing through again, constant, and slightly threatening.
A bit more stripped-down than a lot of whatās coming out under the genre label of house lately, the trackās a welcome departure ā in more ways than one.
For us, it clearly evokes a girl lost in thought walking through a foggy metropolis. Nothing but neon and halogen splashes pierce the mist. The bass, like a downtuned car horn wakes her from her reverie, only to realize sheās back where she began. And thatās okay:āĀ