Photo by Josefine Korpe
Pack your bags, plane ticket and boarding pass because you’re about to embark on the trip of a lifetime. Norwegian retropop artist Robert Vendetta’s new single, “Vacation,” is your jaunty, piano rock passport to any destination you want to be. It’s a lighthearted throwback to a simpler era of pop with a sole mission of having a good time.
First of all, the style of retropop, in this instance, refers to how it harkens back to a time of no technological, melodic frills. “Vacation” is a break from the buzz and zapping of synthesizers or layers of ambient sound effects that are digitally designed to replace musicianship. Instead, this is a track that relies upon going back to basics in order to reserve a spot in our ever waning attention spans. As a whole, we’ve become so accustomed to music that is so overproduced on the digital side that we’ve accepted it as standard. Sometimes, you just want to hear someone play their heart out.
In concert, the message of “Vacation” is simple: take a break. For the most part, our lives are always on the go, moving here and there without a respite in sight. Vendetta imagines what it would be like if your boss said, ‘hey, take some time off and relax.’ From there, it’s exuberant at the prospect of becoming a world traveler, name checking a long list of travel destinations i.e. Greece, Mexico, Barbados, just to name a few. Altogether, it’s about seeing the world for the wondrous place it can be.
In his optimistic and jubilant style, Vendetta displays through “Vacation” that having a good time is as simple as a state of mind. Altogether, it’s an imaginative, musical thought experiment about being able to take time for yourself.
Written by Travis Boyer
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