Music
Review
Album Of The Week: Melody’s Echo Chamber – Emotional Eternal
The leading psych-rock figure casts away the chaos of previous years, welcoming dizzy euphoria into her vivid world
“I’m so happy and so proud”, admits Melody Prochet openly on ‘Alma‘, the last single before the release of her euphoric third album, Emotional Eternal. These days, it’s almost arresting to hear pure and sought-after feelings expressed in such clear and candid terms without the colour of metaphor – especially for an artist who, since her Melody’s Echo Chamber debut ten years ago, has always spoken in abstract and imaginative terms.
But the effect is purifying, as the curious but blissful orchestration around her words envelope and swaddle the listener, letting them take in the psychedelic wonders of Prochet’s Chamber freely. Though hints of darkness show themselves in flickers, and moments certainly begin to spiral with nervous energy, gone is the spontaneous chaos of 2018’s Bon Voyage – a reflection of Prochet’s own journey from unhappiness and physical pain to parenthood and reconnecting with nature.
But importantly, the world that Prochet builds on Emotional Eternal isn’t as saccharine as the message of ‘Alma’ might first suggest. ‘The Hypnotist’ delves into the depths of French music history with lava lamp-like hypnotism, while the melodies that guide the expansive waves of strings on ‘Personal Message’ speak to those who don’t understand her native tongue.
Don’t be fooled by its eight-track length; Emotional Eternal is a time-bending trip.
Emotional Eternal is out Friday 29 April via Domino Records.
