Album Review: Majical Cloudz - Are You Alone?
By Jonathan Fuchs, Contributor
[Matador; 2015]
Rating: 2/5
Key Tracks: “Silver Car Crash,” “Game Show”
Since their excellent 2013 sophomore album Impersonator, electronic duo Majical Cloudz have been receiving critical praise over their unique sound, which goes for a more minimal style through its keys, soft percussion and Devon Welsh’s heavy vocals. Over the past couple of years, they’ve been considered an underrated band in the indie-pop genre.
Their third album Are You Alone? is very similar to their previous album in terms of the minimal sound, but unfortunately these new songs are nowhere as interesting or memorable as the songs on Impersonator.
The instrumentation on this new album is pretty different; it’s a little slower and focuses more on synths than percussion. The entire album sounds pretty, but almost none of it is captivating. The more classical instruments like flutes on tracks like “So Blue” sound awkward and phoned-in instead of comforting, which was most likely the intended emotion.
Even Welsh’s vocals, a huge part of what makes the band so lovable, are underwhelming on this new album. His voice is shaky on tracks like “Control” and “If You’re Lonely,” making the tracks almost cringe-worthy on some spots.
The only really good song on Are You Alone? is the first single “Silver Car Crash,” which is about two people tragically yet happily dying in a car crash. The vocals and melodies on this track are solid, and the gospel-like vocal synths are pretty to listen to.
Although there are a couple of pretty spots, Are You Alone? is an extremely disappointing album. Majical Cloudz might redeem themselves on their next release, but for now, pretend this album never happened and go back to zoning out while Impersonator is playing on loop in the background.
