Deep/lofi house producer returns with jazz-infused meditation on modern life
Singapore-based producer mermaids makes a striking 2025 comeback with the release of “Thought Shuffle”, a mesmerizing deep lofi house track out August 15 via SEAlectors. The single features the emotive saxophone work of Roxy Modesto, a celebrated figure in both the jazz and rock scenes of the Philippines and Indonesia.
Serving as a bookend to mermaids’ pandemic-era Flat Curver series, “Thought Shuffle” carries forward the project’s ethos of crafting intimate home-listening experiences while keeping its subtle dancefloor energy alive. The track marks a natural evolution in the mermaids sound, blending warm chords, understated percussion, and improvised jazz flourishes with Roxy’s soulful saxophone lines.
“I wanted to make a track that bridges my previous work with the current sound I’m dropping at my DJ sets across Southeast Asia,” shares mermaids. “The improvised nature of Roxy’s sax adds this organic human element on top of the music I produced in a DAW. It’s like finding clarity in the noise we all experience more and more of.”
Adding to its unique sonic character, “Thought Shuffle” became the first mermaids track to be mixed through a large-format analog console. The Soundcraft TS12, once a mainstay at the legendary TRACKS Studios in Manila, infused the track with analog warmth and imperfections that brought new depth to the production.
True to mermaids’ aesthetic, the single creates an atmosphere that fits effortlessly into quiet morning rituals, late-night reflections, or workday focus sessions. Influenced by the Chicago and Detroit house greats, the track balances sophisticated house grooves with the lo-fi textures that define the project’s sound.
Roxy Modesto’s saxophone contribution adds layers of emotional depth and melodic interplay, bridging the acoustic and the digital while underscoring mermaids’ ongoing commitment to cross-border collaboration in Southeast Asia’s music scene.
“Thought Shuffle” is now streaming on all major platforms.
