Kallai – We Are Forever

Kallai returns with another excellent release that will immediately resonate with anyone who appreciates cleverly written, thoughtfully composed, and flawlessly performed music. “We Are Forever” is their debut full-length album, arriving after a self-titled extended play released last year. Heavily promoted with “Falling” and “The Wave,” two excellent compositions that vividly showcase what you might expect from this material, “We Are Forever” carries eight marvelous tracks that will unquestionably satisfy even the pickiest listeners. The band wrote the entire material in a span of two months, so lyrically it explores the turbulence of life in a time of rising authoritarianism against while pointing out the beauty and joy found in community and self-awakening. It tackles socio-political themes, but also deep dives into various sentiments, moods, situations, and circumstances, making it a highly relatable material that will resonate with the broader audience. Kallai are known for their experimentations with various approaches, directions, techniques, and music genres, and on this particular collection of songs, the band expertly blends all of them in order to depict a lush sonic imagery. Perhaps you’ll notice how shoegaze dominates the most, as all the fundamental elements of this genre lurk around from start to finish, but the band incorporates some of the finest properties borrowed from dream pop and post-punk. These styles suit them well, as they craft calm, soothing, relaxing, ethereal, otherworldly, mesmerizing soundscapes, immediately wrapping around the listening apparatus and transporting the listener to a completely different realm. Kallai expertly incorporated all those qualities that meet the trends of modern music production, yet there’s a subtle touch of nostalgia lurking around and evoking the eighties and nineties, eras when shoegaze, dream pop, and post-punk music scenes thrived and ruled the airwaves the most. Therefore, all these experimentations with various styles, techniques, directions, and approaches resulted in a collection of catchy, memorable, engaging, hypnotic, addictive, and irresistible songs that will not only resonate with shoegaze fans but anyone who appreciates music performed straight from the heart.

This epic sonic voyage commences with “The Hymn / The Beautiful Ones,” a perfect introductory piece that vividly showcases what you might expect from the remainder of the material. Kallai demonstrate their tremendous songwriting and composing abilities by crafting a colossal ambiance, based upon luxuriant chord progressions and riffs, intricate basslines, excellent drumming performance, and profoundly melodic vocal harmonies. The generous servings of reverby, echo, and delay further elevate the cave-like ambiance, making this track such a fascinating introduction to a thrilling sonic journey. “Amor Occidit Omnia” dives deep into the fundamentals of post-punk sound, with all those vividly hearable, warm-sounding, intricate basslines and well-accentuated, flawlessly performed rhythmic sequences, reverby chord progressions and melodies, and another marvelous vocal performance that contributes emotional depth and more complexity to an already intricate structure. This style suits them well, as the band delivers one of the finest modern post-punk songs in recent years. “Protector” is more than a rock-solid proof that these experienced musicians are masters in crafting ethereal, cinematic, dream pop tracks, adorned with all those heavy shoegaze moments. Each upcoming soundscape seems like a logical move, further improving and extending listening pleasure to the max. The way those tender moments transform into raw, heavy, powerful segments goes beyond comprehension so many times during the entire track. “Another World” merges everything you ever needed from shoegaze, dream pop, and post-punk music. You’ll notice how all those thoughtfully assembled interplays between guitars shape a perfect backdrop for all the vocals to shine upon. The vocals shine in the limelight with all those whispery yet commanding harmonies balancing low, mid, and high notes with such precision and finesse. In the meantime, the complex basslines offer more warmth, heaviness, clarity, and depth to the song while the steady, flawlessly performed beats, breaks, fills, accentuations, and other percussive acrobatics cut though the calm ambiance, providing more groove and pace. Like in their previous tracks, Kallai slowly builds a soundscape that immediately penetrates your ears and refuses to let go long after the last notes and beats end.

https://youtu.be/c0WP-CmzOj0?si=HiMGaUWPHzc3ji3r

“Always/Never” is another standout from this material. You’ll be immediately pulled into a whirlwind, built upon fuzzy riffs, warm low-ends, moderate rhythmic patterns, but what makes this song so memorable is the vocal performance. You’ll hear how all those beautiful harmonies levitate around, uplifting the song to an entirely new level, commanding attention, and contributing emotional depth to an already luxuriant ambiance. In the meantime, particular segments of the song resemble something noise pop bands would eventually record, but Kallai showcase their signature moves here by fully stacking this track with more memorable themes, melodies, harmonies, and other sonic delicacies. If some song could explain how dream pop should sound nowadays, that would be “The Wave.” As a first standalone single that announced this album, it showcases all the experience, knowledge, creativity, skills, and talent of these brilliant musicians. The song seamlessly levitates between the eighties and contemporary dream pop sound, but ti still carries some of the finest properties borrowed from alternative, indie rock, and showcase. It’s nearly mindblowing how Kallain incorporated all these styles together without overwhelming the initial sonic direction. “Falling” is another perfect track that combines lush dream pop and shoegaze soundscapes with post-punk aesthetics. With a powerful, groovy, dynamic rhythm section acting as a backbone and lush guitars serving as a backdrop, the marvelous vocal performance floats around, making this composition even more appealing. This epic sonic voyage ends with “As Night Falls,” another longevious composition adorned with cinematic soundscapes, luxuriant layers, majestic instrumentations, and other orchestral decorations that define Kallai’s tremendous, fascinating, ethereal sound. It’s a perfect closure that sums up everything Kallal’s sounds stand for, and one of those tracks that will immediately convince you to spin “We Are Forever” all over again.

“We Are Forever” is a shoegaze masterpiece that not only showcases Kallai’s brilliant ideas and marvelous musicianship but also redefines the genre by incorporating many fresh, unique, innovative moves that will undoubtedly become a staple on the scene. Their tremendous experience, knowledge, creativity, talent, and skills are on full display here, as they deliver one of the best shoegaze albums in recent years. Kallai deserves your utmost attention because their music breaks all the rules and shapeshifts the boundaries. Therefore, head to your favorite streaming platform and check “We Are Forever” out!

https://youtu.be/8GhUd_7-bXc?si=4m7TkzrvufMG7xTo

https://open.spotify.com/album/601RANmw5QscpB2niyO4GA?si=VfZJbdzsQGmZtswQmAX-gQ

#DREAMPOP #KALLAI #MUSIC #POSTPUNK #REVIEWS #SHOEGAZE

Fore Father – Great Pretender

“Great Pretender” is the latest release by Fore Father, an outstanding American music outlet based in Los Angeles, California. Arriving after “Chrysalis” and “All I Ever,” two exceptional singles released earlier this year that vividly showcase what you might expect from the remainder of the material, “Great Pretender” represents their debut full-length album, packed with ten incredible songs suitable for anyone who appreciates cleverly assembled and flawlessly performed music. Operated by Stephanie Carlin and Carey Clayton, two profoundly creative songwriters whose ideas and musicianship go beyond comprehension many times throughout these tracks, this album represents a remarkable triumph of their collaboration. Sonically, “Great Pretender” carries so many qualities that it’s nearly impossible to grasp them all in one listening. The duo uses various approaches, different techniques, unique directions, and many complementary music genres to illustrate such a luxuriant backdrop that immediately wraps around the listening apparatus, grabs you by the collar, and refuses to let go even after the last notes and beats end. Perhaps alternative rock comes to mind first, as fundamental elements of this style dominate the most in the mix, but you’ll unquestionably notice how some of the finest properties borrowed from indie rock, indie pop, dream pop, and cinematic ambient music found their way into this sonic equation. Fore Father use all these additional sonic ingredients as more than necessary enhancements, accentuations, decorations, and other details to uplift these songs to an entirely new level while simultaneously remaining loyal to the primary sonic direction. You’ll notice how each composition carries qualities that meet all trends in modern music production, yet there’s a subtle touch of nostalgia lurking around and spicing things up. This level of dedication to the craft is rarely heard on a music scene nowadays, but it seems like Fore Father assembled all these tracks with such ease. Therefore, these experimentations with various styles, approaches, and techniques resulted in a comprehensive collection of marvelous songs that will satisfy anyone into soulful, wisely assembled, and flawlessly performed music.

As soon as you press play, you’ll notice how Fore Father expertly blends cinematic ambiance with alternative and indie rock sounds, crafting a calm, soothing, relaxing, ethereal, dreamy atmosphere that immediately transports you to a different realm. Each composition arrives with a perfect structure, garnered with profoundly detailed segments, brilliant ideas, and marvelous orchestrations, perfectly stacked for maximum listening experience. With the introductory palm-muted notes and synth pads included within the opening composition “Let The Light In,” Fore Father invites listeners on an epic voyage through an expansive sonic universe. The duo employs hypnotic, addictive, catchy vocal harmonies and minimalistic yet addictive beats for maximum impact. It’s a perfect opening track that vividly showcases what you might expect from the remainder of the material. With tracks like “All I Ever,” “Firestarter,” and “Great Pretender,” Fore Father further expands their sound by implementing a collection of memorable synth leads, themes, melodies, harmonies, pads, and other sonic maneuvers. It’s nearly mindblowing how all these layers articulate together without overwhelming each other. The transition from various segments gives the feeling of transitioning through different worlds and passages, creating a psychedelic listening experience worth repeating over and over again. On tracks like “Firestarted” and “Great Pretender,” the song gradually builds a slightly heavier, complex, abrasive atmosphere by incorporating various chord progressions and riffs delivered on acoustic and electric guitars. You’ll also notice how warm-sounding basslines rumble beneath the mentioned instrumentations, contributing more than necessary heaviness, clarity, and depth, while the carefully crafted percussive segments offer groove, dynamics, and even mode detail. With songs like “Holy,” “Pendulum,” “The Rains,” “The Chrysalis,” the duo leans towards more dreamy, indie, classic, and contemporary pop waters, bringing even more calm, soothing, relaxing, ethereal, and otherworldly ambiance upfront. It’s nearly mindblowing how they stack all those instrumental layers together without overwhelming each other. Depending on the mood and ambiance of the current composition, Fore Father includes apreggiated or regular chord progressions, intricate low-end maneuvers, and complex rhythmic patterns. These beats, breaks, fills, and other percussive acrobatics keep everything in line while basslines bring more warmth. The guitars and synths are solely responsible for an otherworldly, psychedelic, cathartic atmosphere, moments where your listening apparatus with deep dive and get lost in perfect instrumentations.

Still, Stephanie Carlin and Carey Clayton’s majestic harmonies act as a centerpiece of each composition, elevating everything to new heights, commanding attention, and leading listeners on this epic sonic journey. Whether exploring low-end registers, levitating somewhere in mid-range, or experimenting with high-end notes, their vocal performances go beyond comprehension by emphasizing everything they intended to achieve with this material. Besides decorating all these compositions, they contribute more than necessary emotional depth and complexity to already intricate structures. Everything is so carefully, thoughtfully, expertly assembled, achieving perfection with such ease. With such a calm song like “Eternal Waters,” Fore Father gradually announces the closure of this material. It’s one of those tracks that arrives like a passage, yet its dominance has a significant impact, thanks to a perfectly composed structure and performance. “Luminous” sums up everything Fore Father intended to achieve with this debut album. It carries every bit and piece that defines their lush sound. From marvelous vocal harmonies, luxuriant synths and guitars to detailed basslines and minimalistic yet effective percussions, it closes this material with such elegance. It has been a while since I had an opportunity to witness a full-length debut like this one. “Great Pretender” goes beyond comprehension so many times. With a perfectly structured soundscape, thoughtful arrangements, and profoundly poetic lyricism, Fore Father crafted a dreamy, cinematic alternative rock masterpiece rarely heard or seen nowadays. It’s a deeply soulful, emotive, honest collection of songs that not only tackles all the senses but also demonstrates Fore Father’s tremendous experience, knowledge, creativity, talent, and skills. You should immediately place “Great Pretender” on your music radar, because these wise, talented, magnificent musicians deserve your utmost attention. The album is available on all streaming platforms. Don’t miss it!

https://open.spotify.com/album/6AIYG0m5Z4l4p4gm1x5HNF?si=01trwTfSQ2ObpZjiveL5yg

#ALTPOP #ALTERNATIVE #AMBIENT #CINEMATIC #CONTEMPORARYPOP #DREAMPOP #INDIE #INDIEPOP #INDIEROCK #REVIEWS