Twinkles of hyperpop glitter and shimmering, soulful synth swish over R&B backbeats on Ultra, ULTRAvioletcoraline’s 15-minute introductory EP. Sophia Nance, synth player and violinist of neo soul art-rockers lluvii, follows up on her 2024 jazzy bedroom pop solo project, Modern Sophia, with a cohesive dispatch of pastel-hued daydreams that flow between genre influences. Where lluvii’s upbeat, Latin-infused tunes swagger with quick-footed cadences, Nance’s solo work slinks into a swaying register.
On EP opener “1/inf=/=0, to me” and rippling melody “Swamsong,” acoustic strumming anchors ear-catching audio effects and electronic experimentation, while “Crossed walk” emphasizes layered percussive elements, balanced by galactic grooves and precise chimes. The singer’s whisper-soft vocalizations float through her compositions like a blues-scented breeze, guiding the relaxed instrumental atmosphere from one sonic tenor to the next, falling into step with Y2K dance-pop licks on the front half of “Xchange” and psychedelic guitar meanderings by minute two. Final track “boytable (demo)” turns those vocals into three distinct layers: one hushed backbeat, one reverb-infused swell, and one steady storyteller. Meandering existential quandaries and fantastical revelations shape the shifting lyrical cosmos of these free-associative tracks, while bedazzled digital rhythms and real-world instrumentation collage into a hazy, danceable whirlwind.
This article appears in May 29 • 2026.
