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If you were around for the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic-era digicore<\/a> wave, you might recall the sheer amount of music that was being pumped out at that time. Thanks to the ease of uploading on SoundCloud, a blossoming internet scene began highlighting discographies that were littered with singles that barely hit the two-minute mark \u2014 let alone a full album. As the years have passed, a handful of the major players who established digicore have sharpened their output to shape the genre. Standing out amid this change is kuru\u2019s sophomore album, Backstage hologram<\/em>. <\/p>\n Kuru\u2019s latest album follows their prior releases with deadAir<\/a> in what seems to be a concentrated effort to push past the initial digicore or hyperpop image they initially produced. They have done so along label mates Lucy Bedroque<\/a> and Jane Remover<\/a>, peers who have gone through monumental<\/a> efforts<\/a> to similarly fine-tune their output. While all three artists and their respective albums maintain a similar origin in digicore, each release is made unique by a touch of the respective artist\u2019s flair. In kuru\u2019s case, it\u2019s more stripped back than the maximalist rage<\/a> heard on Unmusique<\/em> or Revengeseekerz<\/em>, instead with roots in trap and cloud rap<\/a>.<\/p>\n Backstage hologram <\/em>takes the best pieces of kuru\u2019s prior releases \u2014 re:wired<\/em> and Stay true forever<\/em> \u2014 and combines them into one sound. Lead single \u201cFW19<\/a>\u201d is the perfect example, as it carries the distorted and digitized sounds from re:wired,<\/em> while the beat itself is akin to one of the plugg<\/a>-trap cuts off of Stay true forever<\/em>. It\u2019s like the rap beat version of old Pok\u00e9mon fusion<\/a> websites.<\/p>\n The album\u2019s production is uniquely digitized by way of taking traditional trap elements and transforming them into something mechanical, leaving beats with an icy gloss that isn\u2019t typical in the digicore genre. Tracks like \u201cLet the keys cry\u201d and outro \u201cThree worlds apart\u201d create depth in their production due to this meld. The former starts ambient-like and eventually warps to stagger around kuru\u2019s vocals, with stuttering drums that drown out tranquil piano chords. The latter is an ethereal chillwave<\/a> track with what sounds like a hazy George Clanton-esque beat, as it slowly envelops the listener beside kuru in its dreamy atmosphere. \u201cPray for\u2026\u201d is one of the most compelling pieces of the puzzle thanks to its unusual production \u2014 piano notes punch the beat, creating discord with kuru\u2019s vocals. Their voice flows over notes and finds pockets in the asymmetry, ultimately allowing dissonance to work in harmony. <\/p>\n