House artist, Steve Darko announced the release of his debut artist album ‘Midnight Swim’ to release on February 5 via DIRTYBIRD.
Released mid-January, the voyage that ‘Midnight Swim’ harbors begins with the release of his double-sided single ‘Descending’ and ‘Red’, giving a taste of what to expect from the full length fourteen track album. ‘Descending’, starts with a high pitch then embraces a hook followed by a descending heavy percussion indulging listeners into an eerie vibe– digging deeper into the chasm of Darko’s darker sounds. In contrast, ‘Red’ cultivates a modernized arrangement while balancing the liveliness of acid house. Nala, hailing from the vibrant city of Miami as DIRTYBIRD mentee added a futuristic finish to the final product with her savvy vocals. Both records trails to display the range of rich sounds the full album has to offer.
The album serves as a platform to the exploration of Steve Darko as it is a tale in life- in balance of dark and light. Created during a period of global uncertainty, ‘Midnight Swim’ was a terrace for Darko to find his own escape despite the grim surrounding circumstances. As a full time developer with the music production software leader iZotope, Darko holds an equal passion in creating and playing out his art to the world – “Midnight Swim’ is a reconciliation of these two driving forces.
“I’m beyond excited to release my debut album ‘Midnight Swim’ to the world! Writing it has been such a fulfilling experience and a much needed change of pace for me as an artist. I wanted ‘Midnight Swim’ to showcase my signature style and venture into new sonic territories, but most importantly bring a sense of joy, excitement, inspiration, escape, or curiosity to its listeners. Massive love and thanks to everyone involved with this project - it’s really a dream come true.” - Steve Darko
Nearly half of the album contains a multitude of guest writers, including Claude Vonstroke, VNSSA and Rachel Alix to name a few. Each collaborator helped to shape his vision, contributing their individual talents to the reaching nature of the record.
DIRTYBIRD’s core ethos has always been about pushing innovative music from the brightest stars of tomorrow—an ethos the brand has reinvigorated heavily in recent years. By providing Steve Darko full support to create the album he envisioned for himself, the resulting patchwork of genres, styles, and instrumentation drives in their staunch commitment to this philosophy. In return, ‘Midnight Swim’ is Darko’s way of pushing both himself and his label family into the next chapter of future sounds.