BEST NEW SONGS: DENM - LIT

New artist DEMN brings to mind Chuck Klosterman’s take that it’s often hard to tell hipsters and homeless apart. The Santa Barbara native has in fact been mistaken for homeless by a tour manager. To say he’s apathetic about his looks would be an understatement.

Juxtaposed with that is his music, a mixture of deep house, R&B, and dare I say chill wave. It’s an act of devotion and care, made with meticulous compulsion in the middle of the day. A far cry from his stoner slacker looks that suggest he doesn’t get out of bed till at least noon, or leave his room before taking a few bong rips.

His first single, “Lit,” clocks in at a succinct 3:21, and would fit perfectly as a late night anthem at the club, or the song to put your impromptu, just-got-home-from-the-bar-dance-party over the top. Things start slowly enough, with soft percussion and barely-there synths. It quickly escalates, as the track takes on a darker, heavier tone before dissolving into a house breakdown. “Lit” has an experimental feel, like you’re never quite sure where it’s going. This can in some part be explained by the fact the song’s origins lie in a half-dare, half-challenge.

A long time touring musician in indie bands, and a writer and producer for major pop stars (and lesser acts like Clean Spills), DEMN has been around music his entire life. He’s been writing songs since he was 14 and just now starting to find his own sound. If “Lit” is any indication, he’s found a damn good one. 

DEMN “LIT”

Stay tuned for Dreamhouse, the debut EP from DEMN, dropping later this year.

For now you can head over to Hypemachine and give him the love he deserves.

Don’t sleep on DEMN, you guys.

About Calvin Paradise

Calvin Paradise manages to live a productive life despite a childhood of home schooling and suffering from what some doctors have called the worst case of Groucho Marx's Syndrome in recorded history.