In a singles era, Cheat Codes are keeping their focus on bodies of work and their just-released Hellraisers, Pt. 1 album is more than what it appears. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, KEVI, Trevor Dahl and Matthew Russell ended up in the studio much longer than anticipated and after working on so many records, the trio thought it'd be fun to pull out an idea they conceptualized early in their career. They wanted to work on a three-part album that honed in on each of their personalities. After 18 months of recording, they did just that.

"We wanted to showcase our personalities and our styles: one being very pop, one being very dance, and one being very hip-hop," the group told iHeartRadio of the three-part series. Pt.1 dropped on Friday (May 7) and focuses on Dahl's pop sensibility. "Each representing each one of us. It was intriguing and being able to do it now is perfect timing."

Hellraisers makes for a fitting title for the trilogy as it honors their late manager, Michael Theanne, who passed away just over a year ago. He used the term as a nickname for the group because of their playful and rebellious nature. As for why the Los Angeles-based act kept focused on releasing an entire body of work when the digital landscape might suggest otherwise, they explained that there's an emotion that arrives when listeners consume an entire album compared to singles.

"If you hear a full album, you really get to know who they are," the group declared, adding, "You fall in love with that person or people and you get more attached to them. I don’t think albums will ever die. I think people will fall in love with artists through albums and not through singles." Hellraisers, Pt. 1 boasts a number of guests, including CXLOE ("Between Our Hearts"), Tinashe ("Lean on Me"), Marc E. Bassy ("Do It All Over"), Bryce Vine ("Stay"), Lil Xxel ("No Chill"), Au/Ra ("Wish It Was Me") and AJ Mitchell ("Hate You + Love You"). For listeners, they'll be able to hear how the act plays as chameleons through Dahl's lens and the opening two tracks, "On My Life" and "Lean On Me," remain standouts for the star.

Phill Kross

About Phill Kross