South London alt-electronic-pop duo Internet Cafe release their highly anticipated debut EP Ground Floor, marking a significant milestone for one of the UK’s most exciting emerging acts.
Having already attracted tastemaker support from BBC Radio 6 Music, BBC Radio 1, NME, and a growing list of influential champions, the four-track project arrives as a compelling introduction to a duo whose distinctive sound is rapidly gaining momentum.
Comprised of vocalist Imi Smith and producer Luke Ferrero, Internet Cafe have built their creative world from the ground floor flat they share in South London. Writing, recording and producing everything themselves, the pair channel their experiences of modern city life into a vibrant blend of garage and jungle rhythms, soaring pop melodies, expansive sampling and intricate electronic production.
The EP’s title is a direct nod to the space where both the band’s music and their relationship first took shape. Having met on a dating app several years ago and bonded over a shared passion for music, Smith and Ferrero soon began creating together, transforming their flat into the birthplace of Internet Cafe.
Speaking about the release, the duo say: “Ground Floor’ is a selection of some of the earliest music we made and hopefully lays the foundation of what’s to come. The 4 songs act as an honest reflection of how we’ve been feeling… familiar generational resentment and the realities of being a young person growing up in a big city. The EP takes its name from the ground floor flat we share, where we’ve written, recorded, and produced most of our music since meeting on a dating app a few years ago. It felt right to dedicate the project to this space as it was the birth place of Internet Cafe and our relationship.”
That honesty and intimacy resonate throughout the record. Across its four tracks, Ground Floor showcases a remarkable ability to bridge alternative electronic experimentation with accessible, radio-ready songwriting.
Opening with the spacious, atmospheric textures of ‘The Hills’, the EP quickly establishes the duo’s cinematic approach to production. Elsewhere, the driving beats and emotive melodies of ‘Sign Of The Times’, co-written with Låpsley, demonstrate their knack for crafting infectious hooks without sacrificing depth. ‘Old Habits’ introduces glitching, reworked guitar textures, while ‘Lost Signal’ explores darker trip-hop undertones, further highlighting the project’s impressive range.
Despite its sonic diversity, Ground Floor remains cohesive throughout, united by themes of uncertainty, self-discovery and navigating early adulthood in an increasingly complex urban landscape. Speaking directly to a generation searching for direction, Internet Cafe have created a debut that feels both deeply personal and universally relatable.
The release follows several years of grassroots momentum. Early SoundCloud demos, sold-out DIY performances and growing social media traction helped establish a devoted fanbase long before the duo’s first formal project arrived. In one particularly inventive campaign, they repurposed more than 250 floppy disks embedded with NFC chips containing an early track, “Same Place”, posting them to fans free of charge as an exclusive first listen.
Their rise has continued on the live circuit. Internet Cafe have supported Good Neighbours on a sold-out UK tour and performed at a host of festivals, including The Great Escape 2026. The pair were selected as a Live Nation Ones To Watch artist in 2025 and an AEG Rising Artist the same year, with both showcase appearances selling out. Additional performances alongside Lolina and Vendredi sur Mer, plus appearances at Future First and Bird On The Wire events, have further cemented their reputation as one of London’s most promising new acts.
To celebrate the release of Ground Floor, Internet Cafe will headline a special launch show at The Waiting Room in London on June 25.
For a duo still at the beginning of their story, Ground Floor feels remarkably assured. Equal parts introspective and euphoric, experimental and accessible, the EP offers a captivating first chapter from a band whose potential appears every bit as expansive as the city that inspired them.
Listen below:
