Hi everyone! I recently released my debut album Counterculture and I'd really appreciate your feedback!

[EnigmaTico 21]

So even though my music can technically be classified as 'bedroom pop' since I tend to write, record and produce all my tracks in my bedroom, the album itself is really eclectic. I'd personally describe my sound as retrofuturistic but if you're a fan of synthy pop music with a heavy 70s disco/ 80s new wave influence, then I think you might really like this album. It's available on all the major streaming platforms (Spotify, Apple Music, Tidal,  etc) and if you don't have a subscription to any of the aforementioned sites but still want to listen, you can stream here. It would mean a lot if you could give it a listen. <3

P.S. I'm Jamaican so if you find it hard to decipher the lyrics cause of my accent you can find the lyrics on my Genius page. Really looking forward to your comments/critiques so if you have any notes or suggestions (or just wanna tell me which songs resonate with you the best), feel free to share in the comments below. All feedback welcome! (Also if you want you can also follow me on Twitter and Insta) ^_^ Looking forward to hearing from y'all! Thank you for reading/listening! :)

[electra 20,644]

hey! so i decided to give this a wee listen (i’m at work and probably don’t have time right this second to listen to the whole thing, but here are my current thoughts as i’m listening:

 

Pride:

wow! the strings at the start are so gnarly, and then straight into that 80’s beat. really wonderful, it’s easy to understand your references immediately. it feels like a more 80’s synth wave version of confessions on a dance floor. the only big thing is why are the vocals so low? i think they should be mixed a little bit louder into the song, it’s easy to lose what you’re saying. maybe just a little bit more backing vocal too? i love what you did on IDGAF with the backing and secondary vocals, i wish it was a bit more present on the first track. also, i very much appreciate that the first track into the second track is (relatively!) seamless. very catchy and i love the message. i was a lot more impressed than i thought i would be.

 

IDGAF:

the high backing vocals in the later half of the song are giving me beyoncé. i like this a lot. again, catchy with a great hook and it’s really fun.

 

Doozy:

this slaps ! but the vocal quality is starting to blare a little here. i think it would really be good in the long run for you to invest in a microphone that’s a little bit higher in quality or a recording space that allowed it to sound a more cleaner. and again, just boosting those vocals a lil more so we can hear you a bit more! but this one has a GREAT build and instrumental and even tho u know it’s a lower-key song of the album, it still grabs you on the first couple of seconds. love that.

 

1AM:

the vocals come in hard with this one. for reference, i think the vocals at the start are the volume the lead vocals for a lot of the other songs should have been about. also, that drum beat....phew. it’s giving me like the soundtrack to the warriors with the high synth sound faded in the background? i probably my fave track so far! i think the faded vocals work a lot better in the verses of this one too. very dreamy.  the guitar at the end and beat change? smart. it somewhat takes me back to mid 2000’s pop. beautiful and surreal.

 

Lie 2 Me:

again, another more low key song that just completely grabs your attention. i think the vocal mixing here is a lil more clear so i can appreciate it a bit more. backing vocals are lovely too. and the chorus is great. it’s giving a lovely subtle mix of like 2000’s RnB with disco. really fun.

 

okay, i don’t have much of a break left rn but from what i listened to so far i’m really impressed if this is your debut/an independent record. i really want to listen to the rest bc it actually really works and all the songs kinda slapped. i was expecting a couple at the start to maybe drop but no, the energy is really well maintained! there was only a few things i would mention with the vocal mixing but honestly i’m very impressed. the thematics for the songs so far are really nice. i really did enjoy the first half of this experience and kinda can’t wait to listen to the rest when i get home.

[EnigmaTico 21]

10 hours ago, electra said:

hey! so i decided to give this a wee listen (i’m at work and probably don’t have time right this second to listen to the whole thing, but here are my current thoughts as i’m listening:

 

Pride:

wow! the strings at the start are so gnarly, and then straight into that 80’s beat. really wonderful, it’s easy to understand your references immediately. it feels like a more 80’s synth wave version of confessions on a dance floor. the only big thing is why are the vocals so low? i think they should be mixed a little bit louder into the song, it’s easy to lose what you’re saying. maybe just a little bit more backing vocal too? i love what you did on IDGAF with the backing and secondary vocals, i wish it was a bit more present on the first track. also, i very much appreciate that the first track into the second track is (relatively!) seamless. very catchy and i love the message. i was a lot more impressed than i thought i would be.

 

IDGAF:

the high backing vocals in the later half of the song are giving me beyoncé. i like this a lot. again, catchy with a great hook and it’s really fun.

 

Doozy:

this slaps ! but the vocal quality is starting to blare a little here. i think it would really be good in the long run for you to invest in a microphone that’s a little bit higher in quality or a recording space that allowed it to sound a more cleaner. and again, just boosting those vocals a lil more so we can hear you a bit more! but this one has a GREAT build and instrumental and even tho u know it’s a lower-key song of the album, it still grabs you on the first couple of seconds. love that.

 

1AM:

the vocals come in hard with this one. for reference, i think the vocals at the start are the volume the lead vocals for a lot of the other songs should have been about. also, that drum beat....phew. it’s giving me like the soundtrack to the warriors with the high synth sound faded in the background? i probably my fave track so far! i think the faded vocals work a lot better in the verses of this one too. very dreamy.  the guitar at the end and beat change? smart. it somewhat takes me back to mid 2000’s pop. beautiful and surreal.

 

Lie 2 Me:

again, another more low key song that just completely grabs your attention. i think the vocal mixing here is a lil more clear so i can appreciate it a bit more. backing vocals are lovely too. and the chorus is great. it’s giving a lovely subtle mix of like 2000’s RnB with disco. really fun.

 

okay, i don’t have much of a break left rn but from what i listened to so far i’m really impressed if this is your debut/an independent record. i really want to listen to the rest bc it actually really works and all the songs kinda slapped. i was expecting a couple at the start to maybe drop but no, the energy is really well maintained! there was only a few things i would mention with the vocal mixing but honestly i’m very impressed. the thematics for the songs so far are really nice. i really did enjoy the first half of this experience and kinda can’t wait to listen to the rest when i get home.

 

Firstly, I just want to thank you so much for taking the time to not only listen to the record, but to write this very detailed review. I REALLY appreciate it and I don't take any of it for granted for even a second. It really means a lot ❤️

 

In any case, when you mentioned that Pride made you think of an 80s synthwave version of Confessions on a Dancefloor, I audibly gasped because Madonna is one of my biggest inspirations and that album in particular did influence this record a great deal - especially the transitions in-between. I knew I wanted the album to be cohesive and the transitions to be seamless and so I was adamant that the ending of each track was going to bleed into the beginning of the next. I also smiled when you said that you were a lot more impressed than you thought you would be. I love surprising people, especially when I'm being underestimated haha 

 

Also I was like "omg!" when you said the harmonies for IDGAF gave you Beyoncé teas. What an honor omg. Like I can't think of a greater compliment cause Bey is literally like, THE standard. Anyway, thanks so much. During the songwriting process I came up with these melodies/harmonies on a whim and after I recorded them via voicenote, I asked my buddy Jericho to re-record them on his mic and he sent them back to me and I overlay them with my own. I'm so proud of what he did on each track though. He did a phenomenal job imo. 

 

Re: Doozy, I bought a Tonor XLC mic for this project (which was relatively inexpensive compared to other HQ microphones) and in all fairness outside of the producers I worked with for each track (and Jericho's help with BG vocals), everything else in terms of the vocal mixing/mastering was completely DIY and v. trial and error for me. Since I didn't professional record the album in a studio (and my recording space was admittedly v. small), I'm not surprised about your thoughts on the overall vocal quality. Def. room for improvement! I do agree that Doozy slaps though. The pre-chorus is my favorite part of the track. It's so catchy!

 

As far as 1 A.M. goes, it's funny that you can make out the vocals cause I added a lot of reverb on the track to make it sound really hazy/psychedelic/trippy. It's meant to sound like a dream because the lyrics are very stream-of-consciousness and I imagine this is what my subconscious sounds like. Sonically, Lana did influence this particular track so that's probably why it's your fav lol

 

Finally, Lie 2 Me is another one of my favorites so I'm relieved that it grabbed (and kept) your attention all throughout its runtime. Even though the album is pretty eclectic (and heavily disco infused), I was surprised that you could hear an early 2000s R&B influence on it.That's definitely new! Never heard that before but I'll take it! haha

 

I know you didn't get to listen to the rest of the record but if/when you get a chance to, I'd love to hear your thoughts on the final three tracks.  All in all, I'm really glad that you liked the album and that at no point did I lose your interest. I didn't want this album to have any fillers because that's one of my biggest pet peeves on studio albums so it was definitely a priority to ensure that everything was compact and succinct but still exciting enough to keep you around for its almost 30 mins runtime. Thanks so much again for listening and God bless. (P.S. I hope you had a great shift at work!)

[PrettyBaby 2,220]

Hi, I listened all the way through, and though most of it isn't my kind of music I think it is very well done. I did enjoy the last two tracks, "Growing" and "Bounce." Great job!

[EnigmaTico 21]

2 hours ago, PrettyBaby said:

Hi, I listened all the way through, and though most of it isn't my kind of music I think it is very well done. I did enjoy the last two tracks, "Growing" and "Bounce." Great job!

Thank you so much! I appreciate you taking the time to listen and comment. Truly means a lot <3