Review: Yasi - Bullet Through My Heart EP

The radio waves are dominated by plenty of pop superstars, crooning their way through track after track of the usual fare. From Brittany Spears to Rihanna and Miley Cyrus, pop music is filled with more of the same, hook-filled licks but little variety overall. Sure, much of its fun to listen to (there’s a reason people are buying the music up left and right) but when all is said and done, have these artists really contributed anything legitimate and lasting to the musical canon?

Thankfully, in recent days the pop music scene has also seen great artists like Ellie Goulding, Lana Del Rey, and Florence and the Machine come along, engaging audiences with an enriched brand of pop flavors, boasting rich creativity and insightful songwriting to contrast against the more forgettable. Now, we can thankfully add rising artist, Yasi, to that short list of worthwhile pop listens as her debut EP, Bullet Through My Heart, showcases her own display of honest songwriting colored with a compelling electronica-fueled sonic backdrop.

Consisting of three strong tracks of dynamic electro-fueled pop, colored with fills of industrial electronica reminiscent of Nine Inch Nails, the Bullet Through My Heart EP is soulfully propelled by Yasi’s breathy and sensually delivered vocals. Her voice is at once strong and vulnerable, weaving through each track with a practiced ease.

The EP bursts out to a strong start, as the title track, “Bullet Through My Heart” breaks through with relentless percussion, the driving beat pushing a frenetic pace while keyboard fills find all of the electronica elements blending together with the artist’s honeyed vocals for a complete package that showcases her at her best. It’s a track that sets the bar high.

 “Dressed to Kill” is fueled by another insistent beat, giving added strength to the lyric that ominously declares, “I’m dressed to kill/Shatter your heart into pieces” as ominous synth tones carry things forth, the moody notes haunting and intoxicating as the track breaks forth into a sensuous chorus. The mood lightens somewhat with “Forever More,” brighter tones coloring the electronic backdrop yet Yasi’s vocals, at their strongest here, keep the deeper elements of gravity intact. Slick and stunning, it’s just the sort of song you’d expect from such a talent.

While love and lust, contrasted by heartbreak and hardship, are critical elements of Yasi’s debut EP, Bullet Through My Heart, her strongest desire seems to be to live life for the moment, setting a defining note that rings through the album. And Yasi is doing just that, crafting a stunning electronically fueled soundscape and gracing it with her silky smooth vocals. Here’s to hoping this is but the first of a long stream of hits for this talented artist on the rise.