EOM: The Stephanie Relfe Legacy

This is my third review of the American project EOM (Explosion of Mind), essentially the work of multi-instrumentalist Ova Banchu. This one is titled The Stephanie Relfe Legacy, a tribute to Kinesiologist Stephanie Relfe. Like his previous albums this is a mixed bag for me. I feel there isn’t a lot of cohesion to keep these songs from falling off the rails. If the artist could remain focused in one direction I think it would help flesh out the songs more and help with the end result. The title track is a pretty decent start, a sort of psychedelic/60s detective serial vibe with some pretty decent guitar work sprinkled throughout. That said, the abrupt ending is much too jarring. The Billie Holiday/Arthur Herzog jazz classic “God Bless the Child� is redone with just vocals and what sounds like programmed drums. The vocals are pretty soulful but I can’t say I’m a fan of this track. Next is “The Ghettysburg Address� which is essentially just a recitation of the famous speech by Abraham Lincoln. The looped sounds at the start are pretty cool, it’s just too bad those sounds weren’t further explored in the rest of the track. The disc ends with the thirty-six minute piece “Invasion of Chrysta Sorrow� which also appeared on a previous album although this is a shorter version and there are a few differences. There are some neat ideas here. Guitar effects, drones and a whole lot of trippiness form the bulk of the song. The track does turn more conventional with catchy vocals, riffs and keys. It probably doesn’t warrant such a long running time but for an experimental effort it’s not half bad.

If Banchu could somehow focus on one theme, conceptually and musically, it would go a long way in producing something more palatable for the ears. Let’s wait and see what the next offering brings.

*No cover art available*

Track Listing:
1. The Stephanie Relfe Legacy (2:30)
2. God Bless the Child (4:12)
3. The Ghettysburg Address (3:37)
4. Invasion of Chrysta Sorrow (36:18)

Added: December 1st 2018
Reviewer: Jon Neudorf
Score:
Related Link: Band at CD Baby
Hits: 795
Language: english

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