Aili’s ‘Damewadame/Shindara’ turns heavy topics into club-ready tracks
One channels urgency around club consent with a percussive edge; the other reflects on the afterlife before diving into acid-laced intensity
Belgium-Japanese duo Aili are back with ‘Damewadame/Shindara’, a two-track EP that pushes their sound deeper into club territory while staying rooted in their sharp, playful approach.
The tracks were shaped from their recent soundtrack work for Belgian TV drama Drift and have already become staples of Aili’s live sets.
‘Damewadame’ hits first—one of Aili's harder tracks that veers more towards industrial edged, percussion-heavy techno and a message that cuts even harder.
“Here I’m literally singing ‘Yes is yes. No is no,’” says vocalist Aili Maruyama. “The song is about consent in clubs [...] Even if you're intoxicated you know what that means.”
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The track was initially composed for a scene in Drift, but its urgency resonates beyond fiction; recent spiking and sexual assault incidents in Belgian nightlife have sparked concern.
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‘Shindara’ takes a different route, starting with a spacious, ambient intro that slowly plunges into acidic synths and a raw, driving groove.
“The lyrics [in Japanese] are essentially about ‘when I die, where do I go?’” explains Maruyama. “It was fun to play with that idea… to have this big existential question and then turn it into a huge club track.”
Listen to and purchase ‘Damewadame/Shindara’, out via Eskimo Recordings, here.
Amira Waworuntu is Mixmag Asia’s Managing Editor, follow her on Instagram.
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