Review Summary: I don’t wanna come back down
There’s something truly
hypnotic about Zella Day’s eponymous debut EP. Her music is already drawing comparisons to that of Lana Del Rey, only with a slight energy lift. On
Zella Day, hazy and dreamlike atmospheres intertwine with exploding pop-based melodies to form something that is absolutely mesmerizing. Judging an artists’ style from a batch of four songs is rarely appropriate, but
if these gems serve to foreshadow anything, then it’s safe to say that not only is she similar to Lana Del Rey - she’s better.
Each of the songs present on
Zella Day prove something different about her style and potential as an artist, but if you’re looking for one track to immediately hook you in, it’s “Hypnotic.” The song truly embraces its title, thriving on an offbeat rhythm, a synthy electronic vibe, and a larger-than-life chorus sung by a woman with the voice of a fallen angel. “Make me feel like someone else…you’ve got me talkin’ in my sleep” is the kind of verse you can expect throughout the record; full of longing but tinged with melancholy. “Hypnotic” is the song we’ve all been screaming for from the Lordes and Lanas of the music world, and it has finally arrived – just not via the pool of usual suspects.
The problem with a lot of “up and coming” artists is that they release an excellent single (or maybe two), and then fail to capitalize on that momentum with any other material of actual substance. It’s too early to tell if Zella will fall into that category, but this EP makes one hell of a case against that type of fate.
Zella Day is so much more than an epic single surrounded by sweet, meaningless filler – it’s a consistent coming out party for an artist hell-bent on proving that she’s for real. “Sweet Ophelia” serves as a gorgeous compromise of styles, bridging the aforementioned super-hit and the timid, piano-laden confessions of “Compass.” There might not be a better lyrical moment than when she sings “take me to the garden of your ecstasy / make myself a headband from your fallen leaves / woven in the fabric of your tapestry / cover me in honeysuckle memories.” It’s clearly the best moment on “Compass”, and while it stands out every bit as much as the chorus from “Hypnotic”, it was most assuredly never meant to attract attention.
Zella Day is sprinkled with sweet little moments like this, and it’s exactly why anyone who listens to this EP in its entirety will fall in love with her immediately.
The curtains close with “East of Eden”, which sounds like it was born from the ashes of a Florence Welch/Lana Del Rey combustion. It’s nearly impossible not to reference either in the description, with a light electro-pop vibe shrouded by mysterious yet melodic howls. For all of the comparisons that inevitably emanate from critiquing her music, they’re done so with a hint of regret because Zella Day is truly as versatile of an artist as we’ve seen come around in recent years. She could be the next Lana Del Rey, the next Lorde…the next
anything. However, following an impressive and completely diverse EP, it seems as though she’d do just fine being the first and only Zella Day.
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