Allie Alvarado is a Honduran-American electro-pop singer and producer based in Los Angeles. Her new EP entitled “Strong” is a collection of tunes written during the 2020 covid-19 pandemic.
The EP’s title track begins with a darkly textured electronic instrumental that is spaciously designed with Allie’s delicately breathed voice reverberating over the sound bed. Accompanied by a gritty beat and warm bass, you’re right away immersed in the EP’s vibe. The hook flexes its electronic skills with pitch shifting and awesome funky synths that ride the beat’s uptempo progression. The catchy vocal melody is the icing on top, providing a head bobbing moment for the composition’s energy and dynamic range.
The verses and bridges provide interesting ambient spaces for the song to thrive within its minimalist qualities before returning to its chorus. The heart grows strong the more you use it and this tune becomes more catchy the more you play it.
The second record titled, “Syllables of Love” returns with a trip-hop, dark electronic vibe that also has traces of dub and reggae. There are so many genres being fused in the first two tracks that you can trace a number of bands, groups, and artists who may have influenced the EPs sound. What’s impressive iis how authentic and original the songs sound up to this point. “Syllables of Love ” has great sensibilities to the various qualities of the different genres it’s fusing and again reveals Alvarado’s songwriting capabilities.
“Feel the Earthquake” maintains the spacey, minor timbre of the record but is probably the most vocally focused song as far as layers, creating a subtle vocal wall of sounds. There are also so many interesting textural choices through sound that provide different feelings to the overall vibe of the song.
The concluding song “Moments of You” adds a beautiful closure to themes of the EP of finding yourself through tough times, heartbreak, and loss. The song truly feels like a coming of age moment with its optimistic dynamic trajectory. The hook is really powerful, with a personal favorite vocal melody of the entire EP. The tune also is able to establish its own personality towards the EP while still feeling part of the same world. The drums again, are slightly textured and programmed with new patterns, introducing new colored timbres of percussion and snares. The project is also full of beautiful pads and chords that are always sitting nicely under the various melodies of the project. The concluding song “Moments of You” adds a beautiful closure to themes of the EP of finding yourself through tough times, heartbreak, and loss. The song truly feels like a coming of age moment with its optimistic dynamic trajectory. The hook is really powerful, with a personal favorite vocal melody of the entire EP. The tune also is able to establish its own personality towards the EP while still feeling part of the same world. The drums again, are slightly textured and programmed with new patterns, introducing new colored timbres of percussion and snares. The EP is also full of beautiful pads and chords that are always sitting nicely under the various melodies of the project.
Alvarado has showcased her strength in creating conceptual projects with “Strong” feeling interconnected both thematically, lyrically, and musically. For fans of conceptual albums/EPs who are also enthused by moody, introspective music – Ally Alvarado is a great talent with a unique voice. In a world of oversaturated music following trends, “Strong” is an EP that escapes to its own universe of artistic expression.
Written by Jon Kagan
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