Review Summary: "I didn't want you to leave me"
Reviewing this album now almost seems superfluous. Somehow 7 years have gone by. We are all older, different, better in some ways, and worse in others. This album is no different and neither is Lapalux. I really have not enjoyed an album of this kind since it came out all those years ago. Speaking of 2013, it was quite a fruitful year for electronic music. Lost among the now classic releases from such artists as Bonobo, Jon Hopkins, and Burial is Stuart Howard’s debut release
Nostalchic. Under the moniker Lapalux, Howard was signed to Flying Lotus’ Brainfeeder Record Company in 2012. There is good reason why a talent such as Lapalux would pique the interest of FlyLo. Their music is not at all dissimilar, and while FlyLo offers a more astute listen, their work tends to reign listeners in for the same sorts of reasons. Preceding 2013’s
Nostalchic with a handful stellar eps, Lapalux had himself a small yet loyal following leading up to his debut. He then dropped what is now considered his most notable track, and first single off
Nostalchic, “Without You”, featuring the emotive vocal performance of Kerry Leatham. Although the single has gained the status of being the go-to Lapalux banger, it is not that far off from any of his previous works. This would normally be an unfortunate revelation for fans eagerly awaiting a uniquely blended full length, but sometimes consistency trumps novelty.
The near classic feature of this work is its showcasing of an artist who is extremely proficient at whatever he sets his mind to. He somehow makes us forget that chopping and screwing r&b samples over electronic beats is a greatly saturated feature of his musical market. Listening to this album at 4am during quarantine reminds me of how breathtaking it truly is. It can incite such feelings of utter, full body bliss, something that I not only find absent in his latest works, but in the genre as a whole itself. Infused with vexing and sensual samples as well as subject matter,
Nostalchic is an illustrious example of when adding one’s own electronic flavor, over slow and twisted samples, goes right. The proficiently utilized cuts, and when present, vocal performances, beat and bang off of one another into a triumphant cacophony of utter sensuality. There is so much going on at times, like in the track “Kelley Brook”, one wonders how Lapalux so effortlessly makes use of these samples in such malformed harmony. It is almost as though he takes the most out of left field samples and tries to blend them together for the pure sport of it.
While this album can easily come off as homogenous, or simply too repetitive, standout tracks such as “Guuurl” feature delicious sounds and vocals that leave listeners with nothing short of pleasure by means of audio stimulation. Lapalux’s debut oozes a strange, almost redolent form of addictiveness, as it constantly makes one yearn for a past love. After 7 years
Nostalchic has lost absolutely none of its charm. It remains a shining example of how to gain an audience by means of tweaking endlessly layered beats and samples. This work will never be looked at as a hallmark of electronic music for most. Though for those of you who allow it, it can create a sonic landscape that envelopes you in a warm spring of welcomed nostalgia.
Nostalchic is what many of us secretly yearn for in music. It is a brief means of escape into a reality that has long since passed us by, yet refuses to be forgotten.
