New Music Critiques: Michael Blu

Austin-based Michael Blu's merging of tried & true songcraft with EDM’s fizzy, super-sonic pyrotechnics yields mixed results. That’s particularly true of “My First Song” where the overall synth-heavy spaciness of the track achieves a thumping, pumped-up festival energy that is undermined by drops (esp. at the 2nd verse) that don’t quite de- liver the listener to a higher plane. Better is “You’re the One” with its interesting sounds and the way the verses ow, rhythmically and melodically. Its unexpected Spanish guitar break provides a welcome romantic punctuation. Blu’s best is “Spaceman,” a buoyant crowd-rouser whose chant-along chorus is an open plea to an alien entity to come show us Earthlings the way.