Back in 2012, the New York-based artist known as Zebra Katz had a viral moment with the single, “Ima Read.” That success was immediately followed up with a couple of EPs, mixtapes, remix collections, and guest spots. After that rush, Zebra Katz took a few years to lay low. Now he’s back and better than ever with a brand new album, Less is Moor.

Less is Moor was written, produced, and recorded between London and Berlin, and that influence can be heard over the course of the album. By that I mean that Katz, along with Death Qualia, Sega Bodega, Tony Quattro, La Martinus, Br83the, Walter Gross, Count Baldor, Jugglerz, Mike Dextro, and Torus have concocted a sound for Less is Moor that combines the New York ballroom scene and infuse it with European dance music, such as drum and bass and jungle. The result is an album that immediately hits you with a pulsing urgent energy and doesn’t let up until you get to the end. It feels like a dark and sweaty dance floor, in all the best ways possible, where everybody is feeding off the energy of the music and then each other as you all move to the rhythm. This is already great, but it’s what Katz is doing on the mic that really takes things up a notch. Katz has a delivery on the mic that sounds like he’s trying to have a very serious conversation with you while you’re at the club, with a very clear low voice and direct cadence that lets the lyrics slide right over the booming bass and drums straight into your ears. And yes, there are times when Katz is just having fun and letting loose, but there is also room for serious discussions about race and sexuality as well. It’s an album where rage and celebration live so close to each other, the line starts to blur, and you being to see the dance floor as the revolutionary space that it is.

Back in the early 2010s, it was easy to think of Zebra Katz as a novelty, as we are want to do with most viral sensations. However, with Less is Moor, Zebra Katz has moved well beyond that. This is a brilliant album of Black queer defiance, with sharp, danceable production and clever lyricism that have you discovering something new each time through.