By Adam Enomoto
Managing Editor
Using digital methods to reflect the natural world may sound like a daunting task, but the Vancouver-based electronic project Teen Daze revolving around Jamison Isaak seamlessly juxtaposes the two spectra.
Teen Daze’s 11-track album “Themes for Dying Earth” blends together creative instrumental tracks, soft melodic lyrics, and dynamic sounds to create a gentle uplifting album. However, a few of the songs are less than two minutes long, revealing that Isaak could have done more.
Album: Teen Daze Bandcamp streams all their albums on their website.
Teen Daze’s new full-length album, Themes For Dying Earth was released February 10 under FLORA, the band’s own label. Isaak first released his first album “All of Us Together” in 2012, followed quickly by “Glacier” in 2013. Since 2015, Teen Daze shifted from an electronic beat style with elements of house and instrumental to a more of an indie pop introspective sound, adding his own vocal as well.
Photos: Teen Daze “Themes for Dying Earth”
Songs such as “First Rain” and “Lost” are the highlights with their flowing background music and aesthetically favorable melodies. Teen Daze does an admirable job with creating an album with pleasing vocals and instrumentals.
Field recordings of running water mingle with laid back beats and a lazy dance of keyboards, all coming together into a melodic tribute to nature. However, songs such as “Lost” and “Cherry Blossoms” are pop-forward and dynamic in composition with the rest of the album. “Themes for Dying Earth” successfully blends intricate lyrics and balanced instrumentals, creating an ideal electronic album.
A downside to their album is that I feel that there wasn’t enough of a variation between the songs. Songs such as “Becoming” and “Dream City” offer little difference in their simple beats, becoming mundane even though they are relaxing.
Themes for Dying Earth will be available on iTunes on February 10th for $9.99. It’s available for streaming on Spotify and First Listen.
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