EL PERRO DEL MAR - “EL PERRO DEL MAR”

CD: EL PERRO DEL MAR - "EL PERRO DEL MAR"

Review: El Perro Del Mar is Scandanavian singer and musician Sarah Assbring, The key element that makes this album truly affecting is its joining together of disparate elements. The primary musical focus is on sounds, such as 60’s girl-group harmonies, chiming bells, and beautiful melodic hooks, all usually associated and paired with lyrics of uplift and joy. While the subjects of the songs, concerning such things as parties, candy, and puppy dogs, at first seem to match up appropriately with these sounds, one is quickly aware that, however sweetly the words may be sung (and they are sung very sweetly, indeed), they focus largely on feelings of pain, loneliness, and melancholy. In addition, the production adds its own disparities, as each song is full of echo and multi-layered vocals, but the instrumentation is almost always extremely spare, usually consisting only of light percussion and keyboards. It is as if El Perro Del Mar takes the 60s girl-group “mini-symphony” template and turns it instead into a ”minimalist symphony”. In sum, the union of musical and lyrical approaches seemingly at odds with one another works brilliantly here, making this album a unique and compelling listen.

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