3

5.0 (1 votes)

Band: LoveIsElectric
Title: The Hope EP
Label: N/a
Release Date: 9/18/2011
Reviewer: Chris W
Buy: Bandcamp
Tracklisting: 

1. Lift You Higher
2. Forgotten
3. Welcome Home

About a year ago I attempted to put together an electronica compilation for IVM, needless to say it didn’t happen. What did happen is I found LoveIsElectric, the one man project of Jesse Burns. His music was good but sounded so much like Owl City that if it came on my iPod I would have to look to see which artist it was. Is that bad? No it speaks volumes to Jesse’s writing and production skills, but it doesn’t make him stand out as an artist. When I started looking for artists for Electro Pulse he was one of the first I wanted to check out again because I was excited to see where he had taken the project, and I was not dissapointed.

The most noticeable change is that Jesse has dropped the bubbly layered synth sound and replaced it with a blend of synthesized strings, acoustic guitars, and electro beats. The change is drastic compared to previous work and it works well. The opening track Lift You Higher still showcases the Owl City-esque vocals but the guitars and strings are so pleasing to the ear. The melodies will bring to mind the vocal stylings of Relient K’s Matt Thiessen. The second track is Forgotten which opens with that distinct crackling noise of a turntable. The track takes a rather unexpected turn with rapped vocals over pianos. The EP finished out with Welcome Home  an uplifting and joyous yet sad track about finding joy in death. The lyrics are straightforward yet well written and don’t come off as cheesy. The production is very well done as I mentioned earlier it’s something that Jesse excels at. My only complaint is the EP is short, but according to the Bandcamp page it’s a preview of a coming full length album.

Overall: LoveIsElectric shows huge amounts of promise, having broken free from being an Owl City clone and developed a more mature sound. This isn’t quite electronica as most would think but it opens up a new area of the genre by adding acoustic guitars to the mix.

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