Melotone – Entre Ondas
Similar artists: Alabama Shakes, Gal Costa, Khruangbin, Crumb
Few of us still listen to music with our ears. That is to say that we don’t really listen very well. It didn’t just happen, either. It was a gradual process. We’ve reduced the actual sounds created by the musicians as an afterthought.
Yes, some of the first music videos are pop culture artifacts. But old-time rock musicians trembled at the thought of making one. They now had to be an actor too? Was playing your instrument well not enough? Not enough!
Social media can be a marvelous tool for promotion. It can get a local band to reach an international audience. However, it comes with pressure. Musicians feel that they have to promote the image that they think their fans want to see.
It all works to make people not very interested in the actual sounds anymore. What happens when you close your eyes while listening to a tune?
Melotone’s Entre Ondas is music designed to send you to a different world when you hear it and close your eyes. Who plays it, what they look like, or how many followers they have are all besides the point. This is psychedelic jazz-rock influenced by the tender grooves of Brazilian Tropicalia. That ought to be enough!
Demeter – Monster
Similar artists: Soundgarden, Laura Marling, Big Thief, St. Vincent, Patti Smith
Genre: Similar artists: Soundgarden, Laura Marling, Big Thief, St. Vincent, Patti Smith
If you get a free invitation to a theatre show that is more than four hours long and is entirely spoken in Mandarin, do you go? You probably won’t and avoid making eye contact with the person exchanging the invitation ever again.
This scenario isn’t much different from what many ambitious musicians do. Sure, their hopes and dreams are great fuel for their art. Sure, it’s much better that they focus their energies on this rather than on something potentially harmful.
However, one has to consider people’s time. It’s also wise to consider their ever-shrinking capacity to pay attention. With this in mind, most songwriters are forced to return Ray Davies’ old advice of having to make an immediate impact.
There are only a few exceptions. Demeter’s Monster is a song that takes its time to unfold. The musicians are willing to bet that they’ll get you interested from the first seconds of the song. From then onwards, it flows like a spell. There aren’t many snappy tricks being used. This isn’t a typical rock song, either. Demeter creates the sonic equivalent of a fever dream, a delirium. It’s hard not to pay attention.
