Under Half Tone

Thoughts and reviews on the most vibrant pieces of electronic music and its branches. My Musicboard: https://musicboard.app/underhalftone?rel=copy

[underhalftone]

Why is It Important to Breathe. Jigitz - All My Exes Live in Brooklyn

EDM, as a genre, is very controversial in itself and has many "camps" of opinion, so it is very interesting to analyze releases of this format from the perspective of the genre and its interpretation by the artist. So, today we have "all my exes live in Brooklyn" by jigitz on the table.

Of course, there is no denying that there were a lot of expectations for this release, as it is the artist's debut album. Well, of course, in the spirit of any debut album, the level of meticulousness in the work reached its maximum in all aspects, but let's take a closer look at what we got on the platforms.

I propose dedicating a separate paragraph to the intro of the album titled "leave." Have you ever felt like you were losing touch with reality when listening to the opening track? If not, you've simply been keeping "leave" at a distance. It's not often that you encounter such a comprehensive ambient experience in a debut album from the Dance genre, which is why it sounded so captivating within the album. Smooth and sometimes dirty synths, a fruitful work with dynamics and space, and a wonderful transition to the main tracks - that's what you can say about this single. It seems that if jigitz had released the intro as a separate track, slightly expanding it, it would have easily become one of the most successful in her career.

However, we are all curious about the art that was born in the artist's imagination in the "body of the album," so let's turn our attention to it. Do you hear it too? The contrast! A smooth and unexpected contrast of music and, most importantly, genre. The jigitz creative portal takes us from melancholic and foggy ambient to energetic and confident EDM Bass, and "tell you straight" greets us with its fast tempo and author's ringing voice. You're literally witnessing the emergence of new musical solutions at lightning speed. Everything starts to flow faster and louder. While this single may not be my favorite in the genre, it did manage to surprise me a bit. The transfer between worlds is literally self-describing at the beginning of the album.

What is attractive about the work is its consistency. You listen to the album and can't understand where the process of "accepting" a new track is. It's not there! The adaptation happens so quickly because of the uniformity of the singles. Even the different bass lines have a solid foundation. The musician was able to balance the quality, technique, and, in some places, elegance of the album quite well, and there is no need to strain to start breathing in time with each new song. However, this balance is overly precise, and sometimes the movement is too smooth and flat, which hinders a full understanding of the concept and the overall work.

When it comes to the instrumental side of the album, it's safe to say, "I know what this genre is!" as the set of instruments is painfully standard for EDM Bass music, which is both the album's hallmark and its weakness. Why should I hear the same thing in every track? And why should I be bored? No one has an answer to these questions. Even the musically rich tracks like "say you'll never leave" and "free myself" are built on genre clichés, which makes it difficult to understand the art hidden within the synths and drum rhythms. The album feels empty and cyclical, making it feel dry and incomplete.

Of course, among the thousands of EDM works, "all my exes live in brooklyn" mixes into the new sound industry, but the release suffocates from a lack of freedom and falls from being constrained within the same framework, although this beautiful work of inspiration definitely has the potential to attract a lot of attention from listeners if it were a little more free and diverse.

[underhalftone]

THANK Y’ALL TUMBLR PEOPLE AND EVERYBODY WHO LIKED MY FIRST REVIEW ON MY TUMBLR BLOG🙏🙏❤️❤️ it was unexpected surprise for me, sooo I’ve rapidly decided to start working on my new review on a EP by pretty interesting electronic singer😋

[underhalftone]

Heaven is Lite and Beautiful. “gossip” by Confidence Man and JADE

Among the large number of full-length releases, we all miss the small works that can amuse or even surprise us with their extraordinary nature. The most interesting part is not just finding such releases, but stumbling upon them among seemingly simple and basic works aimed at a wide audience. One such release is the collaborative single "gossip" by Confidence Man and JADE.

You turn on the track, hear such a smooth and sustained beat, and don't understand why you feel the urge to move, as there's nothing extraordinary about the composition. If this is true for you, you've made a mistake. Transparency and simplicity are the key features of this single's summary. Everything, from the initial sounds to the climax, is designed to captivate the listener's ears. Catchiness is the word we need. The catchy backing vocals, the main voice, the ringing drums, and the beautiful mixing in context keep us engaged throughout the track, preventing us from getting tired. It's a classic Spanish motif! Just look at this single, which kills us with its cliché, but instead of hitting the floor, we fall into a state of ecstasy.

If music is the release's legs, which it uses to reach our ears, then the simple lyrics are its hands, which it uses to reach even through our eardrums. "Gossip, oh, my God, alright, alright, alright" - try not to hum these lines and you'll fail miserably, as even the stanza, rhyme, and rhythm are already a "hymn of all repetitions" on this record.

“You only get what you deserve
You only reap what you sow
Every detail is a blur
(Blur, blur, blu-blu-blur)
Broken bones, sticks and stones”

Did you notice the movement? This body, against your will, tries to breathe to the rhythm of these lines. And no, it's not about the strikingly wise meaning, but rather about the way the authors have implemented the delivery through the "stalling" of the rhythm.

And so, it comes down to what we expect to be a "couture" cover from a high-fashion visual. But where is it? Why is it so simple? These questions don't need to be answered, let alone contemplated. Just relax, swim with the sound waves on this three-minute journey from the track

In general, the release is an energetic rest and letting go, dropping off problems. No need to think, you just need to listen and sometimes catch yourself by surprise

[underhalftone]

Hyperconcept or Looking Through a Prism. Lipsticism – Wanted to Show You

Conceptual artists have always been a separate group in any genre, and the perception of their work often depends on the concept of the release. One such artist is in front of you. So, the psychedelic LP “Wanted to Show You” by Lipsticism.

Concept

As mentioned earlier, the work is a very conceptual dreampop-like release that combines ambient, tropical house, electro pop and other genres, so such a bright set should be perceived very carefully, because a wrong understanding of the idea, can cause resentment towards certain creative moves. As Lipsticism herself says, such a genre choice is due to the idea of the lightness of the body and mind, the nature of relationships and long summer days. The album is literally a dream, a moment of waiting. Such a comprehensive idea allows you to immerse yourself in the music and structure of the album with great interest. “Wanted to Show You” is a very good example of an interestingly played concept.

The interest of the instrument

The face of any multi-genre release is the diversity and consistency of the instruments. Lipsticism, as always, surprises with this. Unusual guitar samples, dreamy synths, ringing drum parts sound not only interesting, but also immerse in the atmosphere of the album, help to become a part of its story, and their unexpected appearance evokes a wide range of emotions. However, it is worth noting that some of the instrumentations are not consistent with each other, and sometimes individual samples may sound good on their own but not when combined into groups. This inconsistency is due to the specific nature of the mixing process, which does not reduce the gap between instruments as much as it does on raw tracks.

The interest of the vocals

One of the most entertaining features of the release is that the vocal parts, which may seem completely dry or without emotion, actually carry a large emotional spectrum, which is only different from the bright one we are used to, but it also conveys the author's feelings about this work. Another question is whether such a very conceptual move again is an overload for the record. Excessive complexity of the compositions can prevent you from building a full and unified picture of what is happening in your head, or even turn everything into an indistinguishable set of sounds. Moreover, a vocal idea that is too independent can overshadow the main concept of the work.

Musical development

Musical development within the framework of conceptual psychedelia has its own important features. It is necessary to take into account not only the technical features of the genre, but also the prism through which the author looks at the world in this album. “Wanted to Show You” in this regard is strongly “resting” precisely in the author’s vision, so the usual picture of how a release should develop is crumbling under Lipsticism’s ideas about the structure necessary for the successful implementation of the concept. However, such a structure in some places looks very abrupt and sometimes plays the role of a "hilly" road along the way of perception of the composition.

Style

In the previously mentioned multi-genre lies the elegance of the work. The record is sustained by stylistic aspects. The ideological line is well traced in each of the tracks in one form or another. It is worth noting that the style of work is also maintained by those very unexpected emotions that are so aptly conveyed to us through the waves of sound. Through the style in “Wanted to Show You,” we can clearly see what the author of the release wants from the listener at what points in time, which is very important for a strong connection of ideas and intentions between the creator and the listener.

Visual part

An equally interesting part of any, and especially, conceptual work is the cover. “Makeup” for sound will allow you to understand the mood of the record, even without listening to it. In the work of Lipsticism, the cover does not do a bad job of maintaining the mood of the release, but it does not “sound” as a separate tool for creating it. And in principle, compared to the album “Elapsed Kiss”, which raised the bar in the visual part, “Wanted to Show You” was a bit disappointing in this regard. Meanwhile, a huge visual gem is the further design of the activities related to this release, the Lipsticism tour.

In summary

Overall, the work is quite an interesting element of psychedelic-dream-electro-pop culture and, in my opinion, is capable of captivating more than one listener's gaze, and its 7.3 rating is well-deserved. Translating the final release rating into a five-star system, I rate “Wanted to Show You” by Lipsticism at 4 ★