REVIEW: Hongza - Coming Of Age
- Amy Smyth
- Jul 27
- 2 min read
Coming from the roots of London with a passion for finding his own way through the music industry HONGZA has finally released his deluxe version of his EP Coming of Age. The original EP was released in 2024 with five tracks but the deluxe version has an additional three versions of songs the fans already know and love.
This deluxe version includes two new versions of his single Lovesick, with a new alternative version as well as an acoustic version you can hear the song completely reimagined with a brand new space surrounding it. The track Lovesick is a transcript on the euphoria of reuniting with a long distance partner and reigniting the feeling of falling in love all over again.
It’s new version is much more spacious with its lyrics whispered and soft, it's more stripped back than the original. The track opts for soft electronic beats rather than the original upbeat acoustic drums in the first rendition. The vocals and synths now find themselves saturated and reverberated, echoing through the brain of the listener, it almost changes the context of the lyrics with the emotions the instrumental brews.
She Changes The Weather is the other added track, also being reimagined with a new alternative version. Once again the upbeat drums and guitar are dropped to introduce a new synth filled experience. The genre of the song bends towards the lofi-pop end of the shoegaze spectrum, still keeping its roots but showing the track in a fresh light.
The EP ends on the acoustic version of Lovesick, stripped back to just the soft lyrics and the strumming of an acoustic guitar along with decoration from another dancing alongside it. Each version of this song on the EP brings a completely different light to the track, this one very much highlighting the vocals and really giving a moment to hear the delicacy in HONGZA’s voice.
HONGZA himself took on the producing and mixing role on these tracks to sharpen his skills and perhaps even produce for other artists in future “I threw myself into the deep end to produce and mix these songs myself,” he added “I’ve now started feeling confident enough to start producing for other bands, so watch this space.”
The overall journey of the EP with all the songs together portrays HONGZA’s progression through these past two years, showing his new skills and his growth within the music industry. We hope to hear more from him soon!
Score: 7/10
Coming Of Age will be released on 29th July 2026 via Killabop.
Words: Amy Smyth
Photos: Hongza
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