Local Review: Lucy Break – aaphrodite

Lucy Break
aaphrodite
all:Lo
Street: 09.20
Lucy Break = SOPHIE + Grimes + Slayyyter

Lead singer of Stardance Riot Lucy Break’s debut album, aaphrodite, is a project that encompasses hyper pop and drum and bass with some noise mixed in. Stardance Riot is a local band with indie-rock, funky elements, composed of five artists with Lindy Alvarado on rhythmic guitar, Parley Kimball on drums, Ethan Goldrup on lead guitar, Paulo Cubas on bass and lastly, Lucy Break on acoustic guitar and lead vocals. Break jumps from a ‘90s rock guitar influenced by Alex G’s instrumental music to more of an auto-tuned noise and electronic pop sound. 

aaphrodite is a 10-track album, including two accompanying artists, evenlynthebassist and siloh. The overall album reminds me a bit of Charli xcx’s hyperpop albums how i’m feeling now and her most recent iconic summer album, brat. What really sets Break’s music apart is the vocals, the variation of noises used and some slower tempo songs in the album like track eight, “I build cathedrals to knock them down,” track two, “Taurus” and track four, “i can’t help but blush.”

In track one, “some third thing (passenger princess),” the heavy noises, accompanied by the static and modified vocals, meld with the fuzzy vocals perfectly. The song is short but sweet, leading into the rest of the album’s electronic sound. The next few tracks slow things down a bit, while still integrating those modified sounds of piano and guitar. 

I enjoyed tracks two and three, “Taurus” and “olive and navy,” respectively, for their instrumental elements. Both start out a bit more raw, with less manufactured noise added over top. As the songs continue, more autotuned vocals and pop and noise elements are added for a unique sound that is reminiscent of alternative hyperpop/noise duo 100 gecs. The lyrics hold references to pop culture as well, with mentions of horoscopes and dating lingo. In “Taurus,” the singer goes, “You say you’re a Libra but you act/just like a Taurus” and in “olive and navy” the lyrics are, “Sped past the red flags on the East coast / Who knew we’d become what we hate the most?” The pop culture references enhance the relatability of the songs, which represent our current generation. 

With modified pitch and noise layered on top, Break matches the electronic pop background and creates intricate beat patterns that sound like the soundtrack to a video game. On track five, “dying star” with evelynthebassist, the two utilize synths and an uptempo beat that goes with the adrenaline of racing in a virtual car. The upbeat music gets you in the hyped headspace and makes for a club feel, wherever you are.

Many of the songs’ themes touch on relationships, speaking on the types of people they’ve encountered. In track seven, “vulture,” the beginning lyrics to the song go, “Never could find my way around your apartment/stuck wearing skin from 2007.” This lyric makes me laugh because of how clever the line is and how it conveys someone being stuck in their ways. In track nine, “reptile expo,” Break sings, “Feel my pulse check my aim/heard that you’re back together”—another witty and clever line that allowed me to visualize the emotion and set the scene. The way the lyrics flow puts me in a music video daydream where I’m acting out the stories in the album. 

aaphrodite ends with “90 degrees,” a track that includes a collection of electronic beep-boop sounds and out-of-this-world, high-pitched vocals. As if I were transported to space, it starts off with the sound of thunder and fades into robotic, wavy sounds. The end of “90 degrees” brings in the album title: “If you wanted to take I’d give / If you wanted to give I’d take aaphrodite in chains,” which culminates both the track and the entire album nicely. –India Bown

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