The power of playlists. Would you have said that a formula halfway between math-rock and folktronica could reach millions of listeners, accustomed to completely different musical styles and potentially unaware of the very meaning of these labels? Yet, this happened to the music of Evan Lo, a twenty-three-year-old from Boston who records his compositions in his room and, thanks to the inclusion of some of them in Spotify editorial playlists starting from 2023, has seen in the last year his audience go from a few tens of thousands to over three million monthly listeners.
“The Unwavering Hand” is his second album, and successfully replicates the approach of the previous “Killswitch Melodies” – whose title track it is currently and by far the artist's best-known song. The eight tracks all present the contemplative mood that is Lo's trademark: a truly personal style, which while recalling the mood by the Japanese Jyocho (on the math/post side) and Miyauchi Yuri (on the ambient/folktronic side) explores its own domestic and minimal dimension, perfect for use as relaxation music.
Completely devoid of drums and percussion, songs like “Signal Lost” and “Dramamine” (the most listened to on the album thanks to its inclusion in fourteenth place in Spotify's “Chill Vibes” playlist) are placed in a middle ground between the new age/classical regenerating by Ludovico Einaudi and the calm interludes that recur in the records of Explosions In The Sky, This Will Destroy You and company quiet/loud. The appeal to tappingoverdubs and veils of synth is never oppressive, but rather accentuates the open and organic character of the atmospheres.
Completely devoid of drums and percussion, songs like “Signal Lost” and “Dramamine” (the most listened to on the album thanks to its inclusion in fourteenth place in Spotify's “Chill Vibes” playlist) are placed in a middle ground between the new age/classical regenerating by Ludovico Einaudi and the calm interludes that recur in the records of Explosions In The Sky, This Will Destroy You and company quiet/loud. The appeal to tappingoverdubs and veils of synth is never oppressive, but rather accentuates the open and organic character of the atmospheres.
Also appreciated for his home videos on TikTok, Evan Lo has been able to break out of a niche horizon thanks to the discreet charm of his sound. “The Unwavering Hand” does not expand the artist's language, but confirms his talent for music that finds its strength in apparent simplicity.
11/19/2024
Antonio Santini for SANREMO.FM
