The Late Night Cool of "Shlut" by Shygirl

Shygirl has released a new album, Nymph, featuring the instant banger "Shlut".

This two-minute song is packed with a distinct sensuality, earworm melodies, trippy reverb, and an addictive drum line. Shygirl is an English rapper, DJ, songwriter, and singer. When she's not serving as the co-founder of her record label, Nuxxe. She's killing the game with her industrial hip-hop, hip-house, grime-infused club-friendly sound. "Shlut" is a melancholy, dazed-out song. It's reminiscent of the SoundCloud rapper sound, trail blazed by the likes of Lil Peep among others.

She just released her first full-length studio debut, which is a strong follow-up to the last EP Nike from earlier in 2022. No doubt, it's impressive how prolific she's proven herself to be over the past year. It's clear something sent her into a creative frenzy, which is evident from the content of Nymph.

"Shlut" is a sex-positive anthem. Her chorus doesn't explode into aggressiveness, but rather simmers and slow cooks. In many ways, this sound is the evolution of the somber, quiet storm-influenced pop music, pioneered by many of the more moody artists from the 2010s who dominated the internet music scene. Already, "Shlut" has climbed to the top of her Spotify top streamed song list. If you are familiar with Shygirl's other material, you'll find it's not a far departure from her previous work, but does have a more ambient overtone. "Shlut" might even be her best track to date. Considering she hangs out with the likes of experimental electronic producers like Sophie and Arca, she's not shy (no pun intended) about infusing an ethereal quality into this deep midnight anthem. This is the kind of track to chill out to on a Sunday Night alone, or maybe drive to through a thunderstorm.

Many bigger artists seem to be using shorter track lengths as a way to cheat the Spotify algorithm, as the attention spans of music consumers seem to grow shorter by the day, and with that, so do the songs. Still, "Shlut" is a strong track - worthy of admiration and respect. Her rhythms cut through the track like a siren whose goal is to seduce the listener. This experimental succubus anthem is sure to live in the head of all who listen to it at least for a little while.

After rising to predominance through the hyper-pop scene, even attracting attention from pop superstars like Rihanna, Shygirl continues to evolve. The beginning of "Shlut" features experimental noise-based samples, before launching into finger-picked, watery-sounding grunge guitars and layered vocal melodies. Of course, this is cut short when she launches into a saucy rap, cooing "Never mind I'm fucking with myself" after spending an entire verse trying to enamor and seduce the man the song is based on. In comparison to the brash and confident verses, the chorus is quite romantic.

"I can't deal with the thought of you leavin' Me left staring at the ceiling solo I do better with you on my team and Stay the night and we can lay low" Shygirl shows off her tender side through the chorus of this lust-based track. This bad girl anthem is stylistically sophisticated. The noise-based samples and brief pauses show off her expertise at crafting a catchy pop anthem. When comparing this track to the other songs on this project, it's clear this is a bit more woeful, expressing her fears and vulnerabilities while still keeping the harsh and edgy side of her persona intact. With an album name like Nymph, she's bringing in the art-rock influences, drawing from greek mythology among other things. Shygirl is in control of her future.

(Listen to "Shlut" by Shygirl below)