RiYD: St. Vincent, The Zombies, Stephin Merritt, 20th Century Classical Music


The man formerly known by the moniker Final Fantasy finally releases something under his own name. It’s definitely the same kind of sound he’s had for a while, but it’s sonically much more adventurous.

Pallett is known for live sets in which he performs with little more than a violin or a viola and a few loop pedals. Here, he really fleshes out his sound with some glorious orchestrations. This guy really has done a lot over the years to develop a sound that is truly his own and, even though the album is almost too dense on a first listen, its harder to digest bits become all the more rewarding.

In addition, this whole thing is a concept album that forms a narrative about a farmer named Lewis who lives in a world called “Spectrum.” Each song is from Lewis’s P.O.V. in conversation with his creator (aka Owen Pallett). YES!

Try: 8+++ (great combo of electric and organic, use of “parallax” in the lyrics, joyful build), 1++, 5++ (Be My Baby drums), 6, 4, 11+, 7