Major Parkinson: Valesa

Major Parkinson have built quite the cult reputation for themselves in recent years, their 2017 album Blackbox hailed as an eclectic prog masterpiece by some, while the more recent live album, A Night At The Library, continued the acclaim. Valesa is my first encounter with the band, so not quite knowing what to expect from this seven-piece, but multi-guest augmented, Norwegian outfit, I must admit to having been surprised by the grand swooping pop music this album presents. There are three dominant forces here, with huge synths being the main player, alongside a mix of Jon Ivar Kollbotn’s gravely but confident vocals and those from a number of guests (mainly including Linn Frøkedal). The third vital element would appear to be an 80s concept that doesn’t just inform the lyrics as they look to evoke the politics, events and atmosphere of that decade, but also the music that they run through.

This, to be honest, was not what I had anticipated at all and in truth, while the arrangements are nothing short of breathtaking in places, the thumping beats, thick synths and poppy vocals of “Live Forever� wouldn’t do much for me if they were presented as you might more expect from an out and out pop act, rather than here pretending to be something that I’m not sure they really are. It’s a feeling I’m left with all too often from Valesa, the moody synths and reverberating beats of “Intermezzo� and its sports car noises and ‘commentary’ feeling like some left-over from a Miami Vice soundtrack. Whereas “Lemon Symphony� almost feels like comedy circus/TV music as it huffs and puffs into bright scenarios before adding an off kilter, but still ‘dayglo’ counterpoint.

I’m not sure how existing fans of Major Parkinson will adapt to what the band have created here. As I say, this is my first go round with them, but from what I’ve read previously, Valesa lands very far from what I expected. In fairness, there’s no denying the cleverness of “Fantasia Me Now!� as it seems to grab ideas from 80s Queen, Cyndi Lauper and even The Buggles, but its innate pop sensibilities leave me wondering just why I’d be seduced by it. In truth that’s pretty much how I feel about most of this album.

Track Listing
1. Goodbye Blue Monday 

2. Behind the Next Door 

3. Saturday Night 

4. Ride in the Whirlwind 

5. Live Forever 

6. Sadlands 

7. Intermezzo 

8. Jonah 

9. Velvet Moon

10. Irina Margareta 

11. The House 

12. The Room

13. Posh-Apocalypse 

14. MOMA 

15. Lemon Symphony 

16. Fantasia Me Now! 

17. Heroes

Added: April 13th 2023
Reviewer: Steven Reid
Score:
Related Link: Major Parkinson @ bandcamp
Hits: 791
Language: english

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