London-based electronic musician Beringei is back following a brief departure from music-making after his electrifying debut EP for WotNot records in 2019, The People, The Place. The central focus of his latest EP, Without You (also dropping courtesy of WotNot), is adapting to change and the process of making the best of one’s circumstances. The EP was born out of pre-pandemic personal troubles, namely Beringei’s injury and his struggles with mental health in 2019. Given the current state of affairs, it also doubles as a timely and restorative balm for these precarious times.
Opening track, “Peace of Mind”, wastes no time setting the tone. Warm, velvety keys, a rubbery bassline, and airy vocals courtesy of singer Andrés Alcover, quickly envelop the listener as if in a silky blanket. Andrés gently coos the song’s refrain “Oooh I don’t know/What it takes to find/Peace of mind” as the shuffling percussion kicks in and the synths get more spacey, evoking a kind of Herbie Hancock-esque space-jazz suite. There’s a wonderful ease and relaxed quality to the whole composition, offering a soothing counterpoint to the existential plea of the lyrics.There are no grand gestures or melodramatic flourishes inherent to the track, or to Beringei’s music in general. Here, Beringei displays his knack for imbuing his dance music with a sense of restraint and equanimity. There’s comfort to be found in it.
