Shlohmo

Henry Laufer, who grew up in Los Angeles, crafts experimental hip-hop under the alias Shlohmo by weaving together influences that range from R&B to doom metal and drum'n'bass. A co-founder of Wedidit Collective, he attracted notice with the 2011 release Bad Vibes, whose airy, abstract beats were offset by grimly atmospheric guitars. After working with Jeremih and Banks, he issued the heavier Dark Red in 2015 and later broadened that album’s palette on the more apocalyptic The End in 2019.

Laufer began producing music at age 14; by 17 he was shaping cinematic beats in the vein of Flying Lotus, J-Roc, and Ras G. In 2008, while still in his senior year of high school, he helped launch Wedidit Collective, an Internet label and creative community for Los Angeles artists that included eLan, RL Grime, Groundislava, D33J, Jonwayne, and others. After the EPs Shlo-Fi, Camping, and Places plus the mini-album Shlomoshun Deluxe, his first full-length, Bad Vibes, appeared on Friends of Friends in 2011. He supplied remixes for dance, indie, and hip-hop/R&B acts such as Lianne La Havas, LOL Boys, and the Weeknd, and in 2014 he collaborated with Banks and Jeremih. True Panther Sounds released the metal-inspired full-length Dark Red, which Shlohmo supported by touring with a band that featured fellow Wedidit members. Following production work for Post Malone, Yung Lean, Joji, and others, he returned to Friends of Friends with The End in 2019. The EP Heaven Inc. arrived in September 2020.