Carmie Releases A Personal And Warm New Pop EP
Carmie's new EP release delves into a lot of personal attributes in the form of these warm and inviting contemporary pop soundscapes that lean in different directions from song to song, but always come from an honest place, which gives the full record loads of character.
Now, some of these songs have already been released as singles, which definitely did a great job of sort of representing what the EP holds, but there's definitely some other spaces that she goes into throughout the course of the record, and this is one of the reasons why listening to the full EP from start to finish is the best way to go.
I'm not saying this is a concept record exactly, but it sort of feels like chapters in the artist's life. You don't really want to skip around, but rather soak it all in so that you can get more of a glimpse of where she's coming from and who she is as a person.
As I mentioned earlier, this is a record with a lot of that personality and character attached to it, and I think that's one of the reasons that you end up connecting with the record.
She doesn't hold a lot back in terms of her lyrics. She pretty much never does, and that form of honesty and having those inner thoughts kind of spill out is part of her approach.
The instrumental and musical blend is really brilliant as well because she's taking this sort of old-school feel in terms of bringing in classic pop attributes and bringing them into that contemporary space as well.
It feels like something that all came from a real place, and they do tell stories often. She's a great storyteller, and that's one of my favorite things about her. Her stories always come from that personal perspective, and she paints a great picture.
So, the record is called Side B Stories, and it kicks off with "Safe Space," which absolutely introduces you well.
The single has a great sort of plucky guitar, bringing a colorful feel, and she comes in vocally with so much soul that you can tell the genre is a big influence for her.
Now, I think she just seems like that naturally. But she's coming through passionately, but still with a bit of a light-hearted feel.
This is a release that does come from that real place, like I said, but it still has the sort of carefree undertone. It's not bubbly exactly, but it is spirited and has a brightness to it that becomes pretty infectious.
This track, in particular, feels like you're watching a performance live on stage. I dig that about the record as a whole, simply because it puts you in the moment with the songs very well.
"Stranger in the Park" hits the best storytelling on the record, in my opinion. She really digs in, gets descriptive lyrically, and the song has this almost folk-style acoustic guitar.
This is cool because at certain points, our vocals are stripped down to just one track, which doesn't happen all the time on the record itself. She likes to double-track and harmonize her vocals, giving a lot of the release a lush feel.
This track does build up, and the vocals do end up coming in with more tracks as it unfolds.
She's excellent at being able to arrange and build a song so that it hits certain climactic moments well.
I found myself clinging to the lyrics here because, again, she tells such a great story and really helps you visualize what's going on and where she's coming from.
There's always some emotional backbone. She's always utilizing how she felt in certain moments to create music that brings her back to those moments.
Because of that, you are brought in as well, and I think this is a sort of rare but beautiful aesthetic.
"Boy I'm a Woman" digs into who she is and what she has become, getting personal again, but really putting it into this uplifted and sort of powerful approach. It's not over the top; it's very well balanced and, again,
All the songs have this contemporary pop floatiness. I really love this aspect in particular, because you end up flowing with the songs in the vibe they give.
I can certainly hear a little bit of Southern feel on this track as well. It's got hints of Americana but doesn't go all the way there. She always holds the pop sensibility extremely well, but she branches off in little bits and pieces.
She's not afraid to try different things and utilize her many influences to create the music she's giving off.
The record closes with the track called "Bleed to Life," which is one of my favorites because the synth work on this is brilliant. You have a kind of almost '80s pop feel, but it comes through in an orchestral way. It's like a symphonic pop song that knows how to breathe, and this showcases how Carmie is able to really think ahead and pay attention to the little details when it comes to formatting and arranging her music.
She wants to put you there in those moments with her, and she completely accomplishes that.
A lot of the record has levels of polish to it that also help balance the EP in terms of the tones and textures that it gives.
It's a blend of natural and digital instrumentation and a slew of pop tones that you can swim through.
But once again, most of all, it's that honesty in personality that really reaches out and grabs you. She's not afraid to be upfront. I love a record that is unafraid.
So, even if you are not familiar with Carmie as of yet, this is a perfect way to introduce yourself to the artist.
Dig into this release right now and remember where you heard it first.
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