OLIVIA J. BENNETT

I’m an arts writer, researcher and critic based in Australia, open to commissions and collaborations.

I also work as a freelance communications specialist across brand, content and cultural strategy.

If you’d like to see my portfolio or chat about a project, feel free to get in touch.

Gertrude Contemporary Emerging Writers Program | 2020
Melbourne International Film Festival’s Critics Campus | 2019

DON’T GET TOO CLOSE

Skrillex

Written by Olivia J. Bennett
Edited by Isabella Trimboli
Published in print by The Big Issue AU
Issue #682 | 17 March 2023

After an eight-year hiatus, Skrillex – dubstep icon and fixture of the 2010s club scene – makes a triumphant return with two albums. Quest for Fire is a mature return to his signature wobbly basslines, aggressive drops and frenetic beats, while companion album Don’t Get Too Close leans into the hypnotic deliverance of emo, trap and hyperpop’s recent reign. The album features figureheads of the chronically online – Yung Lean, Bladee, Trippie Redd, Chief Keef, PinkPantheress and Corbin – injecting a Gen Z touch to the producer’s millennial sounds. Marked by melancholic autotune vocals and the uneasy sparkle of minor-key scales, the album transforms the trap-laden, manic doldrums of today into an easier palette for the unconverted. Kid Cudi’s and Justin Bieber’s features are sure to draw numbers, but it’s the album’s foundlings that bring a brighter future to Skrillex’s career. His versatility on this album and its counterpart has reignited respect for his talent and set the stage for a new mainstream.