Review Summary: Well, at least it's consistent.
A solitary figure stands motionlessly, surrounded by miles of arid desert terrain. There’s a faint glimmer of light on the horizon, as if signaling the way home for the weary traveler; this scene, as depicted on the album cover of
Fallen Paradise, describes its musical accompaniment quite well. Tim Bettinson – the brainchild behind one-man project Vancouver Sleep Clinic – has built his career on a style that many critics have labeled “ambient pop”. That is to say, Bettinson’s tunes are normally built upon spacious, expansive foundations: lots of chasmic synths, slow tempos, languid vocals, all that good stuff. However, things are starting to get just a little
too languid at this point. There’s not much to separate one track from another, despite some minor quirks and deviations here and there. The first song to really stand out in the tracklist is “Nightfall”, which gives the acoustic guitar a much more prominent role. However, by the second half, it turns into the same drowsy balladry that weighs much of the project down. None of this is helped by Bettinson’s vocals either; he’s already been dogged by comparisons to Justin Vernon of Bon Iver in the past, and this might be the most blatant display of such to date. At least 90% of the record is dominated by his airy falsetto, and it gets extremely old after a while – in fact, one of the most egregious examples is in the opener, “Magic”. The instrumentation is harmless enough, but Bettinson’s falsettos in the chorus just get ear-grating after the third or fourth time they’re used.
There
is, however, a cut at the end of the record that gives a glimpse into what this album could have been. “Blood Money” is a wonderful little piano ballad, complete with rich harmonies and sparse, hypnotic arrangements. Bettinson’s singing is much more enjoyable here as well, as he opts to work with a more natural vocal register and instill a sense of calm in the music. It’s a real highlight in an otherwise forgettable album, a record that seems to drone on without much purpose or life. I suppose
Fallen Paradise could serve as a decent relaxation or meditation album, but if you’re looking to be engaged or challenged in any way, the experience won’t give you much to latch onto.
