Los Angeles-based creative technologist August Kamp has always blurred the lines between worlds, and her new 8-track odyssey, ‘reconnecting.everything’, is her most cohesive and fascinating statement yet. Tucked away in her off-grid botanical garden studio, August (she/her) is a self-sufficient producer and trans artist who has spent the last six years meticulously crafting a unique sound, and this album feels like the culmination of all that experimentation. It’s a living, breathing ecosystem of sound that asks what happens when analogue warmth meets digital complexity and AI, and the answer is absolutely breathtaking.
The record’s lead single, ‘Our Distinction Between Work and Play’, serves as an instant highlight and a perfect encapsulation of the album's expansive vision. It starts in a beautifully intimate, almost nostalgic acoustic space, evoking the hushed, fractured Americana of Bon Iver’s later work. But don’t get too comfortable, because halfway through, the track erupts into an ecstatic, groove-driven metamorphosis—a sudden and joyful gear-shift that catches you completely off guard. August insightfully describes the song as “two sides of the ever-flipping hellish coin of life under capitalism,” capturing both the struggle and the glorious, fleeting moments of freedom. It’s an intellectual concept delivered with raw, emotional punch.
Across the rest of the album, August never settles. Her knack for blending genres is truly showcased on tracks like the hypnotic ‘Commandeer/in.the.Headlights’, which channels the ethereal, rhythmic glow of electronic pop filtered through a hazy 1980s synth fever dream. Meanwhile, ‘NDA’ dives deeper into the emotional core, presenting a complex, intricately layered piece that’s as rhythmically compelling as it is radically vulnerable. August’s sound draws on everything from club-tinged pop to pure electronica and cosmic Americana, but she manages to fuse it all into a distinctive, future-facing vision.
‘reconnecting.everything’ is a gorgeous and constantly bewitching collection of songs, but more than that it's a philosophy set to a magnificent beat. It’s an album that shines through tracks like ‘Let Leave’ and ‘My System’, dancing lightly and cementing August Kamp’s place as one of experimental electronic music’s most vital new voices.
You can dive into the new album now, and for more, be sure to join August on Instagram.
