imaginary trip sounds

Nite Jewel é Ramona Gonzalez, compositora, cantora e artista multimédia de Los Angeles, a quem se juntou mais tarde Emily Jane. Good evening o seu álbum de estreia, lançado no ano passado, tem fortes influências disco dos anos 80, new age e shoegaze e o resultado é uma electrónica que varia entre a dança, o electro-pop, a indietrónica e o downtempo. Com sintetizadores melódicos, teclados vários, uma caixa de ritmos e canções gravadas em 8 pistas, o álbum apresenta-se propositadamente, com uma qualidade de gravação caseira. Daqui, uma análise mais pormenorizada ao álbum:

"On the surface, the 10 tracks that make up Gonzalez’s full-length debut Good Evening come from familiar places, her rudimentary drum machine loops and overall song structures channeling the likes Debbie Deb and Lisa Lisa with equal aplomb. But whereas those ’80s sensations sang over skeletal tracks that implied a cool, airy distance, Gonzalez’s dedication to 8-track recording technology and its inherent limitations makes for a far more intimate affair, as songs like “Artificial Intelligence” effortlessly merge delicate beats and swirling synths with Gonzalez’s airy voice.

All things considered, then, it’s no real surprise that Nite Jewel has collaborated with members of Ariel Pink’s Haunted Graffiti, as both groups use roughly the same methods to approach different eras of pop music. But more than just aping the sounds of pop stars gone by, Nite Jewel also manages to incorporate more introspective and distinctly left-field elements of all eras of dance. Tracks like “Weak for Me” imply more than a bit of Arthur Russell, be it in the starry-eyed vocals, or in the way Gonzalez manages to craft something deeply moving and memorable out of deceptively simple elements.

Therein lies the power of this understatedly great debut – in avoiding a simple homage to sounds that came and went a couple of decades ago, Gonzalez managed to imbue her music with a greater historical perspective. Understanding not only the place of pop hits but also the underground sounds that rose as a response, Nite Jewel’s Good Evening slinks by on the strength of understated pieces like “What Did He Say,” shuffling along with presets that, while originating in a wholly different era, still manage to sound remarkably of our time."

Nite Jewel - Artificial intelligence

Good Evening download