By Ethan Hofer, Contributor
[Ninja Tune; 2021]
Rating: 8/10

Key tracks: “She Loves Me”, “Walking With Ur Smile”, “Tell Me One More Time”

After making a distinct mark on the lofi-house scene back in 2017 with Time Spent Away From U, Swedish house producer DJ Seinfeld returns after four years to deliver a dance record that follows in the footsteps of other influential deep house producers such as Burial and Disclosure. 

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Mirrors is DJ Seinfeld’s first record under Ninja Tune and has an approximate run time of about 42 minutes. Inspired by heartbreak and trauma, which he reveals in an interview with Mixmag, “If my first album was about getting past a breakup, this one is trying to understand who’s standing on the finish line.” Seinfeld puts raw emotion on display for the listener to enjoy and takes a step away from lo-fi; however, he still expresses personal hardships and does not fail to deliver on this album, much like he did back in 2017.

“She Loves Me”, featuring Stella Explorer, begins the album by mixing melodic vocals with a somewhat gloomy beat. On this first track, he illustrates how emotionally expressive this album is. The lyrics paint a picture with intentional repetition that tells about himself dealing with internal struggles as he finds himself pondering the question, “why does she love me?”, reflecting on his past struggles with relationships.

Immediately following this moody track, DJ Seinfeld flips the switch with light-hearted tracks such as “Walking With Ur Smile” and “U Already Know”, both filled with rapid hi-hats, more melodic vocals, and an upbeat tempo that has more mainstream appeal, something he seemed to shy away from on his debut album. This pair of tracks reveal more joy within the project as he continues to create more variety on every single track.

“Tell Me One More Time” is a prime example of how great DJ Seinfield’s production can be as he combines atmospheric synths with hi-hats and melodies that tie the album together and resembles a similar tone as a track off of Burial’s 2007 album Untrue. This song is more mellow than most and does not give off the same dance floor energy as other songs on this album, but by itself, it shows the beauty within electronic music.

Throughout the album, DJ Seinfeld portrays a multitude of emotions in a way that is both dance-worthy and heartbreaking at the same time. While the album’s message remains lyrically mysterious, he completely reveals himself through his production, which is something he masters on both projects he has released thus far. DJ Seinfields goal was to create something that was very personal to him, as he now has to take care of his father while managing personal relationships, and he expresses his sorrows throughout this record very well.

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