Voodoo Sonic represents a
bit of a unique type of release schedule. Effectively, this is an album; but
rather than release a whole album as one would generally do, Parov Stelar has
made the choice to split it up into a collection of three EPs, each one spaced
several months apart. I’ve reviewed Parov on this blog before: his legacy
throughout electro swing is unmatched, and no other artist can be said to
approach what he’s done for the genre. In fact, he’s arguably bigger than the
genre itself, and I’ve had several conversations previously regarding who has
benefitted more by mutual association: him, or every other artist making this
style combined. It’s certainly a close call. Anyway, this release marks the
second of the trilogy (somehow, I overlooked a review of the first when it was
released last December), and many will have been waiting to see how it compares
to the first.
The EP opens with ‘Brass Devil’, of
which the fantastic Alex DeMers has already recorded an excellent review over at Jazz and Tea. This track presents Stelar’s brilliant, classic sound – with
several different layers, sections, and feels that all come together in a great
way. One may compare this track to Boogie Belgique’s ‘Mr Fisher’, as they both
use the same sample from Gershwin’s ‘Stiff Upper Lip’; however, Stelar has
utilised this in a completely different way, really demonstrating the variety
of approaches different producers can take to the same sample. The build-up
towards the end is great, and overall this song sets the EP off on a very
strong start. Next up is ‘Piano Boy’, with its real jazzy, bebop-esque sound.
It’s quite reminiscent of Stelar’s earliest work, the likes of Rough Cuts
and Seven and Storm; in fact, it’s almost acid jazz sounding. Indeed, one
of the jazzier electro swing songs I’ve heard for a while, it really creates a
great ambience, making one feels like they’re in a dark, smoky, underground
club. The song features a solid driving beat which flows beautifully, and there’s
several layers of piano throughout, each one more progressive and proficient
than the last. There’s a similar effect with the trumpets too.
So far, so good; the EP is
strong. Unfortunately, this changes somewhat with ‘Don’t You Forget’. This feels
rather odd alongside what we’ve heard so far; it’s a particularly cheesy
number, and wouldn’t seem out of place at Eurovision. It’s much more
traditional dance-pop sounding, and aside from the recognisable vocals of Lilja
Bloom and Anduze, there’s nothing too Stelar-esque about it at all – it might
have been better suited to one of his side-projects, such as Stelartronic. ‘Fade
to Red’ takes this same kind of direction away from electro swing; this one
works a little better, and sounds like the type of thing that could accompany
the title sequence to a gritty crime drama, but it’s still not brilliant. I’m
not against Parov experimenting outside his established sound, but when his
established sound is as good as it is, I don’t know why he’d want to venture so
far away from it. The final track is ‘Come Back Home’, which showcases the kind
of bluesy, country and western vibes done to such a high standard by the likes of
Thomas Vent. I really like the twangy guitar in this one, and it ends the EP
back on a high. There’s quite a strange section a couple of minutes in, with a
developing synth that completely changes the tone of the song, but despite
sounding a little off when it begins, seems to work better and better the more
it progresses. When the main section kicks back in it actually works perfectly,
and when he pulls this technique off a second time with a different synth I’m
genuinely surprised by how much I like the effect.
Overall then, this EP is quite
similar to Part One in terms of quality. That one was slightly hit-and-miss,
with some fantastic moments – such as the title track – but others that were a
bit lacklustre. Like with Caravan Palace, Parov Stelar has been in this game
for so long that it’s totally understandable as to why he’d want to extend and
expand his sound – and I’d never criticise him for attempting this – but he’s
just never going to live up to the heights that he’s already established. Still,
I’m looking forward to the third EP that will conclude this project. Whilst
both EPs so far have certainly had some lower points, the high points have been
exceptional.
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