IFSDIGI023
KORSAIN - +55 EP ft. rakjay
OLD SCHOOL FLAVORS, NEW GENERATION
Reboots and Remakes
There’s a tide in Korsain’s +55 EP that feels both ancestral and newly born. Basslines recall the guttural pulse of classic dubstep, braided with the snap and swing of Brazilian funk and samba. As Diego explains, the record came from a moment of study and return: “I was studying a lot about Brazilian funk and returning to the classics of dubstep (which have always been my inspiration since the beginning of the KORSAIN project), using various elements from the new Brazilian generation of funk and samba.” Those influences feed the tracks like a current, recharging early KORSAIN impulses with the colors and cadence of São Paulo—hence the EP’s name, +55.
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The creative process reads like a late-night studio conversation with yourself. Diego keeps it simple: it was “super natural, just with a focus, from beginning to middle and end.” He set three guiding principles; heavy bass tones, hard beats, and swing with Brazilian funk—and let those anchors shape each track. That pared-back approach isn’t austerity so much as clarity: it gives weight to the low end, room for percussive detail, and space for the intimate Brazilian samples that make the project feel rooted and alive.
Then there’s the unexpected: Rakjay’s contribution. Diego admits the collaboration surprised him—he “composed the instrumental thinking of no vocals, and then while reviewing the tracks IFS suggested it would be cool to have an MC, and Rakjay comes with these verses and this was the result.” That moment of serendipity turns the record into a conversation. Rakjay’s voice doesn’t just sit on the beat; it rearranges the atmosphere, punctuates the momentum, and pulls human urgency into the mix like a rich, layered Pavê.
Korsain’s wishes for listeners are disarmingly real. He jokes about loud systems—“listening on gigantic speakers is always cooler hahaha”—but immediately grounds the hope: “I hope everyone has a good vibe and experience, and that they feel something, regardless of whether they like it or not. The important thing is to cause some feeling; I already feel grateful.” That sentiment is the EP’s beating heart: not every listener must love every sound, but every listener should land somewhere...moved, energized, reflective, rattled. Feeling is the score’s true success.
Live, these tracks want bodies and pressure. Sub-bass in the chest, a crowd locked to the swing. At home, they offer textures to unpack: tucked samples, percussive flourishes, and the echo of samba’s warmth against dubstep’s cavernous spaces. The JGDUBZ remix of “CLT LIFE” suggests the songs aren’t finished so much as malleable—built to shift with new collaborators and contexts.
In the end, +55 feels like a meeting place: old and new, local and global, engineered heft and human voice. An EP that pulls its roots forward without losing them.
