MOGWAA レコード& CD

Review: After his first album on Blessyou, Turquoise, Mogwaa aka. Seungyoung Lee, from Seoul, is back with another stellar contribution, this time re-visiting his earlier days of musical appreciation in reggae music. This album is another entirely instrumental work with eight tracks, effortlessly displaying his confidence in the studio when it comes to dreamy dubbed out ambient sounds intertwined with heavy digi, steppers, and even dancehall influences. A refreshing treat to the ear when it comes to contemporary productions as Mogwaa approaches the Jamaican genre with a refined aesthetic of his own. From Korea, with much craft and dedication for the music, it's a pleasure to have him back.

Review: South Korean artist Seungyoung Lee aka Mogwaa is being hailed as a "Balearic prodigy". He approached this label with an idea for an album that was rather left of centre 'bossa tracks with synths, a drum machine and my guitar'. He's managed to pull it off perfectly though across 12 tracks of sun-kissed magic. 'Nacimiento' is slow motion sunset boogie, 'Moondance' is a widescreen ambient excursion and 'It Always Comes And Goes' is deep, inward-facing late-night Balearic soul with majestic synth work. This is as escapist and dreamy as it gets and really brings Mogwaa onto the world stage.

Review: MM Discos provides its first full-length listening experience here courtesy of Seungyoung Lee (aka Mogwaa) who returns in top form. He has a very distinctive take on modern boogie that is always aimed at the floor but never short on character. Here his love of 80s synth and bossa sounds shines through on 'Hazy Dreams' which is an exercise in simplicity from the talented instrumentalist. The aesthetic here pays homage to old cassette tapes and how they decay, fuzz up sound and generally instills things with this down sepia tint. The sodas range from gentle morning awakenings to late-night dancefloor get-downs.

Review: Given her South Korean roots, it's perhaps unsurprising that Peggy Gou has chosen to give a platform to Mogwaa, a producer who has long been a fixture on the South-East Asian country's electronic music scene. His debut EP for Gudu is genuinely impressive, offering synth-heavy, mid-tempo takes on house and nu-disco awash with colourful melodies and sun-kissed chords. Opener 'From Above' is a bubbly, energy-packed affair that gathers momentum throughout, while 'Spacial Bliss' cannily combines live drums and guitars with sparkling washes of sound, cascading melodies and a deliciously tactile bassline. Over on side B, 'Fizz' sees Mogwaa add synthesized Gayageum melodies to a punchy electro beat, before 'Cloudride' rounds things off via turn-of-the-90s Italian deep house sonics and more gorgeous, life-affirming lead lines.

Review: Klasse Wrecks has started a new catalogue naming convention for this Boy EP from Mogwaa which suggests it might be the start of a new series. Either way it's defined by an epic, side-long title cut that is a real house and techno fusion. It has the soulful pads of house but the drive of techno drums, with pitched-up hardcore vocals over the top and a bright, screwy acid line tearing up the middle. It's a beautiful collision of party-ready sounds. After that 14-plus minute epic is a half length VIP mix that distils everything into a more potent and direct track.