Upgrade by mentalEscape: The Album Redefining Electronic Music in 2024

Written by Staff on 11 October 2024

In a world where electronic music often falls into predictable patterns, mentalEscape emerges as a refreshing force, ready to shake the scene with a nostalgic yet futuristic sound. His latest release, ‘Upgrade’, isn’t just another album—it’s a journey. A sonic evolution that draws from the gritty pulse of 90s electronica, while threading together diverse genres like ambient, industrial, breakbeat, abstract hip-hop, and metal, to create something daringly unique and cinematic. Helmed by Boston-based producer Mirza Causevic aka mentalEscape, ‘Upgrade’ delivers 10 tracks that honor the past while forging ahead with modern, innovative production techniques and a complex, multi-layered sound.

mentalEscape shows his artistry with a blend of both calculated precision and raw emotion, making each track on ‘Upgrade’ a powerful statement. For those who’ve been yearning for that thrilling energy of nineties electronica—think The Prodigy, The Chemical Brothers, or The Crystal Method—but crave something more expansive and immersive, this album is a breath of fresh air.

Released on October 5, 2024, ‘Upgrade’ is a year-long labor of love, meticulously crafted and designed to stand apart from the crowd. What makes this project particularly striking is the range of influences mentalEscape masterfully brings together. The beats hit with the weight of the underground rave scene, yet there’s a storytelling element through each track that feels cinematic—deep, dark, and wildly unpredictable. It’s more than just electronic music; it’s a multi-dimensional experience.

Take the album opener, “Pasha’s Night Out.” In this track, we immediately hear mentalEscape’s personal history and musical lineage. Balkan melodies from his childhood are woven seamlessly into electronic beats, creating a perfect juxtaposition of organic folklore roots and industrial edge. It’s a track that’s nostalgic yet kinetic, inviting listeners to not just hear the music, but to lose themselves in it. There’s a sense of liberation in its unpredictable shifts, as if the song is urging you to embrace its journey fully.

This personal touch—this dance between past and present, culture and modernity—runs through the entirety of ‘Upgrade’. Each instrumental track feels like a chapter in a larger narrative, meant to be interpreted and reimagined by the listener. It’s the kind of music that takes over both body and mind: the rhythmic beats compel movement, while the intricate sound design invites you to reflect and get lost in thought.

Tracks like “Keep Going” bring the raw, rebellious energy of 90s dance music to the forefront, delivering an intense alternative vibe with layers of distortion and grit that instantly call to mind iconic acts like The Prodigy. It’s here where mentalEscape’s fusion of old and new feels most prominent, offering a sense of nostalgia while also pushing the genre forward.

Then, there’s “The Salton Sea”—a track that feels like a burst of manic euphoria. The sonic influences are familiar, but mentalEscape’s approach is refreshingly original, with an evolution in sound that keeps you on your toes. The bass lines are heavy, the beats hypnotic, and the overall effect is one of pure immersion.

‘Upgrade’ doesn’t just cater to a specific audience. It flirts with various sub-genres within electronic music, making it accessible to fans of ambient soundscapes, harder industrial beats, and everything in between. Take “0s and 1s” for instance: a track that revives the raw DIY energy of early breakbeat and pirate radio culture. Its frenetic, freestyle energy feels like an extended set from a bygone era, yet mentalEscape somehow makes it feel relevant, even futuristic.

As the album progresses, we find mentalEscape venturing into darker, more intense territories with tracks like “Persistence” and “Hype.” The distortion, pace, and almost chaotic energy inject a sense of urgency, as if the music is always pushing towards something bigger. The latter track, “Hype,” offers an electrifying breaks music vibe—brimming with kinetic force and intricate drum patterns that command your attention. It’s a standout moment on the album, one that showcases mentalEscape’s ability to craft high-energy music that feels fresh, dynamic, and absolutely thrilling.

A moment of note arrives with “AmenBr8k,” where mentalEscape adds a striking riff to the forefront of the track, combining ethereal soundscapes with gritty rhythms. It’s a beautiful collision of the dreamy and the hard-hitting—a duality that defines much of mentalEscape’s music. There’s an undeniable tension between the light and the dark, the smooth and the rough, and this tension is where the magic of ‘Upgrade’ lies.

“Old Town” further explores this, reintroducing the Balkan folklore roots from the album’s opener in a more mellow, meditative way. It’s an exotic and atmospheric piece, with mysterious vocals that rise and fall, providing a haunting, hypnotic quality to the track. Just when you think you’ve settled into the serene, mentalEscape flips the script again with “Night Drive,” diving headfirst into the retro synth-wave aesthetic of the 80s. Bombastic basslines and twisting synth motifs bring a different kind of energy to the album, as mentalEscape proves his versatility once again.

The album’s finale, “Odyssey,” closes ‘Upgrade’ on a haunting yet peaceful note. Its string-like warmth and cinematic fragmentation create an emotional weight, leaving listeners with a sense of resolution, while still hinting at more to come. This is where mentalEscape truly shines—the ability to craft music that is not just sonically compelling, but emotionally resonant.

In an era where electronic music can often feel like an echo chamber, mentalEscape’s ‘Upgrade’ is a breath of fresh air. It honors the roots of electronic music—particularly the bold, experimental spirit of the 90s—but does so with a level of technical proficiency and artistic vision that makes it feel contemporary, exciting, and utterly original.