Valisia Odell, “Shadow Of A Dream”
Valisia Odell
Shadow Of A Dream
Detriti Records
Shadow Of A Dream is labelled as Greek singer Valisia Odell’s debut, but by the end of its breezy half hour run-time you could be forgiven for mistaking her for a stylist who’s been working in darkwave for decades. That’s actually half true, as Shadow Of A Dream is effectively a rebooting of the duo Strawberry Pills, who released a handful of singles and one LP in a minimal wave vein a few years back. The name change isn’t just marketing though, as the focus on Odell’s vocals gives the record a dramatic and engrossing throughline.
Odell’s vocal range and performance style has precious in common with, say, Lene Lovich or Rozz Williams, to grab a pair of grand dames of goth out of a hat, but like those veterans’ releases Shadow Of A Dream places Odell’s commanding vocals and personality right at the center, both in composition and production. That place in the limelight is something Odell makes a meal of, practically looming over the listener with swooping trills on “My Sin” and commanding Greek invective on “Makria” with authority.
Beyond the vocals, the core tunes on Shadow Of A Dream strike a nice balance between modern dancefloor cool and a more classic sense of darkwave harmonics. Handled by Aristomenis Theodoropoulos, who in addition to Strawberry Pills has served time in half a dozen post-punk, goth, and folks acts, tunes like “R.I.N.” and “An Arabian Tale” make the most of their stripped down synth instrumentation with less-is-more flourishes and harmonics. The stabby synth funk of “Breaths” recalls the too-briefly-with-us Animal Bodies more than more contemporaneous comparisons to Boy Harsher or Dark Chisme which I can anticipate others making. Late album highlight “The Light Shines Through” builds a fantastic dancefloor slowburn by juxtaposing shimmering bells against a simple kick and Odell’s untreated vocals against processed ones.
We’ve long held that atmosphere, however you’d care to define it, is darkwave’s defining feature. Of course, the means of producing that atmosphere doesn’t have to be limited to constant gauzy synth pads, and the way Odell’s vocals haunt this record are proof positive of that. Alternately vengeful, malevolent, and chiding, she draws deep from the wells of classic gothic drama and theatricality to thrilling effect here. Recommended.
Valisia Odell – Shadow of a Dream by Detriti Records
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