- Nick León's first ambient record is the byproduct of a marine biology experiment.
- Nick León spent years grinding in the Miami underground, gradually ascending to global stardom in a tasteful corner of the club circuit. As a producer, he's incredibly skilled at crafting dembow-laced barn burners, and his DJ sets gravitate towards similarly inventive Latin music. Recent mixes and club nights have hinted at a gentle side of his sound. On his new release, Projections of a Coral City, he dives headfirst into his outer limits. Here, he teams up with self-described "innovative underwater media" duo Coral Morphologic. Made up of scientist Colin Foord and musician J.D. McKay, the pair encourage León's airiest tendencies here. Across five tracks, the Miami artists use humid ambience to pay homage to South Florida's delicate sub-aquatic ecosystems. Issued by Spanish label Balmat, Projections of a Coral City asserts that León's work is captivating even when stripped of its trademark propulsion.
Projections of a Coral City initially came to life in 2022 as a multimedia exhibition in Downtown Miami. Over five days, Coral Morphologic beamed footage onto the side of a building, hypothesising what might happen if climate change caused reefs to overthrow the man-made sprawl. León and McKay each contributed synthesizer and atmospheric elements to this musical companion, which León structured into a sonic response to Foord's visuals. The end result taps into bittersweet mysticism, and the first three tracks on the release are especially silky. On "Discovery," wiry melodies tumble over burbling found-sound samples. "Hearts Aflutter" opens with grainy FX, which give way to pearly pads and hopeful synth lead. Opener "Deep Call" is the most heavenly cut here, reverberating piano resting atop a recording of cresting waves. The A-side plays like the score to a montage of wondrous outdoor footage, but the back half is more pensive and downcast. "Precipice" and "Reach Out" both employ a serrated palette, centred on grainy, droning chords. The two closing pieces seem to wordlessly mourn the threat to the ocean posed by global warming.
Even León's most party-ready music feels notably, deeply sincere. "As a shy, introspective person, music has always been my tool for interacting with the rest of the world. It's the thing that forces you to learn how to talk to people, how to communicate, how to resolve conflict, how much bigger the world is," León mused in his 2023 Breaking Through feature. There's a quiet thoughtfulness to León's bangers that allows them to feel like more than mere party fuel. Projections of a Coral City zooms in on this poignance, emphasising the tender heartedness that helps all of his music resonate.
Tracklist01. Deep Call
02. Hearts Aflutter
03. Discovery
04. Precipice
05. Reach Out