Inkap & Maybe//Anton concoct a euphoric, glassy drift on their collaboration, River Raft

   I’m a sucker for tracks like River Raft. This Inkap and Maybe//Anton collaboration invokes saudade (the emotional state of happy-sadness), gift wrapped in an exquisite bubbly exterior. Whatever the state of mind, there’s something to enjoy from a track that conveys it’s wonky sound and lyrical content so poetically.

   I’ve gushed before in the Dofflin Retrospective about my love for shimmering and eccentric music, but that admission doesn’t mean you can write this track off as dainty fluting beep-beep music. The confluence of 64-bit synth arpeggios and pristine vocal delivery from Inkap himself communicates the beauty of just being lost and accepting it.

   The song’s structure brilliantly plays into the theme. The verses are crisp and clear, but the moments in between become mangled and chaotic – the vocal distortions drag down Inkap almost like he’s drowning before a wistful admission:

-Carry me, over shoals
-River raft, full of holes
-Swimming now, waters cold
-On my back, no controls
-Waterfall, feeling bold
-Carry me, and my soul
-Out to sea, the river flows
-Another day, I’m living whole

   -and with that, the chorus ends in a resounding flourish of dexterous production chops. Like eyes opening into blinding sunlight, the synths blare onward, dipping in and out of the wash into the ruminating expanse I lost myself in while listening.

   Inkap & Maybe//Anton explained how the track came about:

Maybe//Anton on it’s inception-

   “…from what I remember I was using a pan pipe soundfont instrument to try and make a game soundtrack and then it all went left and ended up sounding more bouncy.

   It existed as a 32 second beat for a few months until Inkap asked to do a collab and this was the idea he picked to develop and write to.“

Inkap continues-

   “…Maybe//Anton (sent) me something he hadn’t been able to decide what to do with… I just really love to hear kinds of projects other artists get themselves “stuck” with and I think it’s a neat challenge trying to turn the ideas on their head when I get the chance!

   And I just love Maybe//Antons sound design so I hit him up… from the two ideas he sent me I picked what is essentially the intro portion of River Raft, and I reworked that into the verse and chorus sections, and we went from there!“

   I want to give a big thanks to both artists for their insights. If you like what you heard as much as I did, Inkap‘s gonna be performing in the upcoming Couch Surfer Fest 2, Nov. 19th-21st, and I’m counting down the days until we can all catch his set. Don’t miss out on the stream, only on our twitch channel, less than a week away.

Support Inkap:

www.inkapmusic.com

Support Maybe//Anton: