Exclusive /// Michael McQuaid Premieres “Cat + Mouse”

Walking into a room of Nikon-wielding, leather-donning creatures, dressed totally in black per invite request, I arrived at the Main House on Saturday night in the right garb, curious to see what kind of response the young Michael McQuaid would conjure. The listening party, an occasion to hear his debut Glasshouse EP before the November 13 release, was sponsored by a vodka brand; the event had a dress code; and the recently released single from his expected EP, “VIBES,” had this ‘one more drink’ danger and a heavy low-end backed by 808s. Add these up, and they don’t equal your usual East side hang. So I grabbed a glass of sweet tea something and posted up for the listening segment of the party’s agenda. Michael, assisted by his close friend, collaborator and lively emcee Vann, narrated the first listen of the six-track EP to an at-capacity room. Everyone seemed eager to get a taste of the guilty pleasure sensation that is his Glasshouse EP, and in between each track, the pair hyped the room by giving shout-outs and toasting friends, passing out single shot bottles and celebrating the finished product. And that product is this slinky, bass-rattling R&B, motion-made by pop vibes and sexy and saturated production. It’s so not Nashville, but by a sensational contradiction, it is what this town is about: making your own sound and sticking to it. And to that, I raise my paper cup and vodka shot.