Alice Dreamt is a self-described “one person multi-instrumentalist indie pop project from Detroit.” At least on Katamari, a descriptor that might be missing is Midwest emo because this genre is felt throughout. Which brings me to why I think this album is interesting. On one hand, Katamari does not seem to bring anything new to the table, but on the other hand it feels like a combination of interesting artists and influences, which keeps this album engaging from start to finish.
The instrumentation and overall aesthetic of this album gives off Xiu Xiu and Shinsei Kamattechan, and to a lesser extent Neutral Milk Hotel, vibes and at times could be confused with something you might find on a “lo-fi beats to study to” playlist. The vocals seem like a mix of Jason Pierce (Spacemen 3, Spiritualized) and Ben Gibbard (Death Cab for Cutie) and in his most desperate of times I am even reminded of Mat Brooke (Carissa’s Weird, Band of Horses).
The lyrics on Katamari are up front and do not try to mask their meaning. For the most part, they are aggressively dark and sad with lyrical themes of depression, self destruction, and lack of trust for others. On the second track, ‘Get Sad’, Alice has a little optimism in the opening verse, singing “If I come back from this shit / I will fucking kill sadness / If I come back from this shit / I will wring it’s fucking neck”. By the chorus though, he seems back down to his lower state by asking “If I breakdown, will you still have my back? / If I trust you, promise there’s no goodbyes / If I told you, how much I want to die / If I get sad, will you still have the time?”
On ‘Coward’ it appears he got his answer, or maybe this refers to someone else in his life, but regardless he is clearly upset with some sort of relationship/friendship here. “There’s a place in hell for your kind / cowards like you don’t deserve friends / don’t deserve love, only to be left” and “Didn’t have to act like we were friends / fucking coward, you can’t take it back” are just some of the lyrics on this one.
This is followed up by harsh honesty and introspection. “Nobody cares / or if they did / I wouldn’t be / fucked up like this // I’m destructive / I’m debased / I will push so / hard it breaks”. This song, ‘Where Sadness Sleeps’, is one of the best songs on the album and has the most prominent Jason Pierce-like vocal delivery. What helps make this song great is that it does not sound as low as the lyrical content suggests it should be, instead it is simply a comforting and beautiful track.
All of the songs here are roughly 2.5 – 3 minutes, which is why the 18:17 runtime of the title track comes as a bit of a surprise. Just like the previous track, this is one of the best on the album and does not overstay its welcome.
The album closes with a heavy dose of happiness and optimism on the feel-good song ‘Goodbye’. Alice seems to have sorted out his depression, or at least found a way to properly deal with it when he sings “Well I found the secret chords / they were always right within me / unplayed and waiting, and then they were born”. He encourages listeners to have hope and look up too, with the lyrics “Goodbye, goodbye, goodbye / to the things that make you sad / to the things that make you feel bad // If you try, you try, you try / then things they must go right / even if they fail a million times”.
Katamari pushes Alice Dreamt off to a strong start, and this is an album I am confident I will be coming back to whenever winter roles around. I am interested to see where Alice goes after this. Will he craft a more unique sound? Will we continue to clearly hear such a range of influences in his tracks? Whatever the answer, I will be checking it out.
Favourite Tracks: Get Sad, Where Sadness Sleeps, Katamari, Goodbye
Release Date: January 4, 2020