Aerotropolis
Ikonika's new album Aerotropolis is a stated tribute to the old-school freestyle house and synthpop jams that soundtracked Sara Abdel-Hamid's 80s youth, a record thats feels like an innovative rulebreaker hitting the reset button and starting a completely new persona from scratch.
Emerging onto London’s bass scene with 2010’s Contact, Love, Want, Have, Ikonika (aka Sara Abdel-Hamid) presented an infectious amalgamation of 80s retro-futurism, chiptune, dayglo synth washes and uptempo garage rhythms. That distinctive combination remains in evidence on Aerotropolis, although some of Contact’s rougher edges have been tidied up. There’s a crisp, poppy edge here, particularly on Ikonika’s first track to feature vocals, courtesy of Jessy Lanza: the soulful, house-inflected Beach Mode (Keep It Simple).