pluko glitters with imagination on colorful solo track, ‘the lovely one’

Only two years into his career, 19-year-old pluko has already gone from bedroom producer to main stage act. Hailing from the small town of Hollidaysburg in Pennsylvania, Sam Martinsen (the mind behind the pluko project) has already secured slots at major North American festivals like Coachella, Firefly Festival, and HARD Summer. After 2018’s debut album, sixteen, via Odesza’s Foreign Family, and the formation of his own record label and collective, Splendid Society, the following year, pluko has already hit the ground running into 2020.

Fresh off his performance at CRSSD Festival in San Diego this past weekend, pluko is releasing his second single of the year in “the lovely one.” The release comes right after his pop-leaning collaboration with Nate Traveller, “blessings.”

“I really wanted to step outside of my comfort zone for this one. I wanted to challenge myself to create a huge burst of emotion that still kind of felt like a drop too,” pluko said in a press release. “This track was a huge breakthrough for me and my journey as an artist. After I wrote it, I felt as if I had just broken down a massive wall. There’s nothing better than that feeling of being onto something fresh and exciting.”

On “the lovely one,” pluko opts for a euphoric instrumental moment on his newest release. Marked by soaring synth work, grandiose percussion, and infectious bass, “the lovely one” is a bass-filled track which glitters with imagination and allows pluko’s forward-thinking production techniques to shine.

Last year saw the independent release of pluko’s CLASS XIX mixtape and several official remixes for the likes of Big Wild, Tycho, Hayden James, Mansionair, Odesza, and more. With more colorful releases on the way and a number of confirmed festival slots, 2020 is set to be a breakthrough year for pluko.