Tuesday 13 September 2016

EP: Ofelia K - Chaos Cave

Ofelia K Chaos Cave



Ofelia K - Another World


Info: L.A. solo artist Ofelia K has just released her second E.P., Chaos Cave, her second E.P. in as many years following 2015 debut four-track Plastic Flower. The impact has been huge in such a short space of time; With spins from Annie Mac at BBC Radio 1, over 2 million Spotify plays, and features on multiple television shows, the world heard her starry eyed songs and asked for oh-so-many more.

Regarding the EP, Ofelia adds, "Chaos Cave was recorded at a couple studios in Burbank as well as at my house in Box Canyon. Massive amounts of La Croix sparkling water were consumed. My producer Andy Rosen and I both have some OCD tendencies that get compounded when working together, so there’s a lot of attention to detail throughout. We worked in Ableton, which really influenced the soundscapes we were able to achieve and allowed for quite a bit of creative freedom. My attitude is always that of letting each song go where it wants to and not feeling strictly limited to one genre, so each of the five songs brings a different mood and style to the body of work."

And so the proof is in the pudding in terms of her 'OCD', it's unusual for a pop extended play to contain 4 tracks out of 5 comfortably in excess of 4 minutes length, a testament to the fact that Ofelia K wanted to leave no stone unturned when it came to fully expressing the music she had created, space was required and speace was given. Back in March I described early single 'Cinco' as; "my kind of contemporary pop, instantly captivating, with hammer-blow beats and keys laying down the law either side of Ofelia K's polished vocal performance. Everything is sharp and cut so neatly to the extent that there are points where the music takes you aback."



Ofelia K - Cinco

In contrast, follow up single 'Bad Boys' stayed true to her sound, but brimmed with a slow burning yet classic 80's anthemic feel, like a restrained version of Kim Carnes' 'Bette Davis Eyes', not so much New York snow, more L.A. sunshine mellow, a soft and caressing pause on this collection of tracks. A track like 'Killing Me' showcases Ofelia K's broader horizons when it comes to song-writing, it's a well-working and very different amalgamation of contemporary singer-songwriter / pop driven and carried by spritely electronic sounds.

'Another World' imbues a more discerning approach, the latest release fittingly feels like a personal retrospective and perhaps joyful relief that the latest phase of her music has been completed. The fourth track, the no doubt sincerely titled 'I Love My Lawyer', mixes full frontal pop with an electronic engine once again, tongue in cheek? Quite possibly! The key point to be taken from Chaos Cave is that as a whole it deliberately strays outside of saturated pop conventions and in fact rejects them to the point that it feels consistently fresh across all five tracks. There's no sign that Ofelia K will be resting on her laurels following this latest release and will gravitate further toward those special moments on future recordings.


Look / Like / Listen & Follow:

Website: http://www.ofeliak.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/heyofelia

SoundCloud: https://soundcloud.com/heyofelia