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Tiefling embodies playful energy on the frenzied “it’s not polite to stare.”

“Tiefling or DJ Tief – a 26-year-old Boston-based polymath artist known formerly as Boy Tox – is pushing the boundaries of sound and creativity. She has released 20 albums, Eps, and singles since 2017 featuring genre-blending experimentation from ambient to classical music to hyper pop.

After starting the year with two PC music/cloud rap and electro-pop collaborations, Tiefling is making sure she leaves her mark in 2023. With an upcoming tour, “Tiefling is a Not Psyop Tour,” spanning 15 cities – many of which are new to her sound – as well as a multimedia installation album set for September and indie singles that date back to where it all began, fans can expect even more from this trailblazing artist.”

Representing the necessity of good musical experimentation, Tiefling brings hyperpop and art pop together in the manic “it’s not polite to stare.” Her background in music can be seen on full display, alongside being self-taught in production, adding to the flair of the style. The colorful array of textures she brings into the fray feels liberating as she ensures that the song seemingly draws from various cultures. Much like Jon Haswell’s Fourth World Music, her approach has this never seen worldview, and one is indebted to the avant-garde pop smiths like SOPHIE and 100 gecs.

Glowing chords filter into the equation with such ease. The Vocaloid treatment, the perfect way it carries the melody, feels highly reminiscent of a Bollywood soundtrack as there is that sense of exquisite beauty. Her inclusion of DNB aesthetics is a delicate touch, with the skittering percussion wisping its way across the entire thing. Nods to Hrvatski adorn much of the work.  It has simultaneous accessibility (the song is an instant earworm) and challenges the listener, making them question what pop versus what it ought to be. Layering works its keen magic, with the melody and rhythms distorted through a prism-like effect, allowing the theme to constantly morph in unexpectedly moving ways. The emotional charge radiating from the center helps to anchor the entire trip.

Tiefling’s “it’s not polite to stare” is one of those rare tracks that push the boundaries of what pop has been for decades in a way that feels fast-paced, frenzied, and slapstick.

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