Saatsuma is a collaboration between Cesar Rodrigues and Memphis Kelly, and while they expand to a five-piece to replicate the production and dynamics of their songs onstage, one of the most immediate points about Overflow is how much of an evenly-matched combination it is.
It’s hard to tell how even the songwriting duties are, but instrumentally Rodrigues’ love for the sound of modular synths form a big part of the record, to the point that – although they don’t sound like they’re from any other point in time – parts of the album could be read as an ode to vintage synths. Against this backdrop of swirling, arpeggiating sounds and electronic beats of varying intensities, Kelly’s vocal is strikingly sparse in both delivery and treatment.
The album finishes with its standout track, Without U Again, a gorgeously atmospheric song with a mournful melody. At nearly nine minutes it’s an incredibly euphoric endorphin release.
The balance of vulnerability in the vocal and lyrical content against the arrangements of synths and drum beats is part of what makes Overflow so special, and to bring it all home with a fairly straight dance moment is a stroke of genius.
