Music found Darryl Bunch Jr. Raised in the south suburbs, Bunch (who performs as Heavee) said ghetto house and footwork music, in particular, as well as other genres like R&B, soul, hardcore hip hop and Southern rap played an important part of his musical life. Yet it took a while for Bunch to embrace his own music-making. Joining a collective (Teklife) was a turning point. Being surrounded by people who wanted the same thing and helped each other be the best they could be was motivating.
On his latest record, “Unleash,” released March 15 on famed London-based label Hyperdub, Bunch steps into the spotlight, sharing a crisp collection of genre-bending footwork music that’s full of motivating spirit and drive that’s sure to please most listeners.
Bunch’s creative process sits in a space of learning: learning new things, new forms of technology, new programs and new people. The aha moment — that place of growth — inspires him to try something out. He usually begins by creating synthesized drums. This base creates fertile ground to build on top of and create a fleshed-out song. Sometimes he’ll remix his work, manipulating and mangling sounds on synthesizers to create something clean and new.
“That’s what feels exciting. You’re able to get different textures,” he said. “I can think of a feeling, of a type of sound that I want, like something metallic or something that feels fluttering and soft, like butterflies, and I can make that. Synthesizers give me a lot of flexibility.”
From there, he’ll add other elements, like his voice or field recordings. Past recordings include the sound of his cat purring, running water in his home and birds chirping. All of this speaks to the organic nature of his music. When sound is all around you, anything can become music. That’s what makes Heavee’s music so compelling. Listeners can instantly grasp that something else, something richer, deeper and more complex makes the backbone of this music. This is music for the dance floor, and for everywhere else.
Work on “Unleash” began in 2021. Bunch felt depressed and turned to music-making and new communities and collaborators for inspiration. After sending initial demos to Hyperdub, Bunch realized he had an important story of his own to tell. “Prior to this, I really didn’t intend on putting a concept or story in a project. It was never a thought,” he said.
But for Bunch, storytelling was often the most exciting part of experiencing an artist’s record. The continuity and flow were exciting to experience as a listener and exciting to tackle as a producer.
“The songs started to take shape in a certain way. I didn’t want to continue to feel like I’m not the best artist I can be. I knew that I had the power to be better,” Bunch said. “The record started to become this hero’s story of fighting to get out and coming into the light out of the dark. Whatever type of scenario that you feel like you want to free yourself from, you have the power to change it.”
For listeners, this journey is heard and felt throughout the record. On the moody, almost downtempo “Search N’4,” Bunch explores what it means to want to change and the power of pulling oneself up. Concepts of change continue on other tracks on the record, like “BangBang,” a propulsive, empowering, body-bumping anthem that Bunch describes as an anthem of confidence about change within yourself. “CanUFeelIt” samples “Follow Me” by Aly-Us, an uplifting and optimistic deep house classic from the ’90s.
However, it’s not all about escape and relief. “Make It Work” provides an interesting contrast between the high energy of the music and the reality of embracing change. We all know intrinsically that the changes we want in life won’t be smooth, but that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t pursue them anyway. It’s evocative music, the kind any listener can understand and embrace.
Later, in the album’s closing track (“Smoke Break”), he explores change sonically, too. Bunch created a jazz arrangement in the context of footwork music, collaborating with artists Homesick & Takuya Nakamura to perhaps hint at the next steps in his musical journey.
“In certain songs, I aim to push beyond or show that there’s new ideas that can still be presented so people familiar with this culture know that there’s a lot more artists like myself that were raised or products of this culture and community that have new and fresh ideas as well,” he offered.
Released from the constraints of what his music should sound like or what he is capable of as an artist, Bunch is free to create on his own terms. His label understood this, too. Earlier this year, Heavee and Hyperdub also launched a choose-your-own-adventure game soundtracked by “Unleash.” The throwback game — which features graphics inspired by 16-bit video games and ancient tapestry — explores the type of hero’s journey thematically present on “Unleash.”
“I’m just trying to find ways to honor the sounds and styles of the people who made this type of music before me,” Bunch said. “I know what they’ve done and the way that they made music, but I also want to showcase the things that inspire me and find new ways to tell the story (of this music) and approach it with a different perspective.”
Britt Julious is a freelance critic.
