Stupor is the debut album of English singer/songwriter Ellis Bloom. Clocking in at just under 55 minutes, this latest effort is quite the odyssey of blues and folk occasionally blended with trippy psychedelic guitar licks (the psych elements really only appear on the first and last tracks, though). It’s entirely self-produced with the help of Logic Pro X, a microphone and an audio interface. Bloom says he wrote and recorded all twelve of these songs on his debut while he was a carpenter working in theater for over five years.
Picture this: you’re on a tropical Hawaiian island, lounging in a chair by the beach while drinking papaya juice from half of a coconut shell. Stupor is the album you’d listen to if you were spending your vacation idling under the sun getting a nice tan, or perhaps lying in a hammock, feeling the ocean breeze rush through. The instrumental, “Sea Salt Spray,” does a remarkable job of conveying such island relaxation, complete with big drums imitating the crashing of waves. Besides the instrumental, there are some quality tunes buried in the haze of atmospherics and reverberation. “I’m Told” is a Jefferson Airplane-meets-early-Pink-Floyd style song, and what it doesn’t boast in strong melodies, it makes up for by having guitars collide with thick coils of bass. This perceived effect is definitely meant to put people in a trance. Other enjoyable songs include “Pink Strawberry Lemonade,” “Not That Kind of Fine” and the Bob Dylan-esque “I’m Gonna Get By.” All three of these pieces feature Bloom’s harmonica playing as well. Later on, the album transitions to a noticeably mellower sound. “Cleaner than Smoke,” for instance, is perfectly appropriate for a smoke-filled tavern. The closer, “Hold It Down,” is arguably the greatest number on Stupor. Starting off slow and low, its electric guitar picking gives way to some galloping tom drums and hushed vocals, yet rather than building up in intensity, it seems to go back to being quiet again. It’s honestly quite cool, and yes, psychedelic, to hear Bloom playing around with dynamics. In a way, I’d argue that Stupor’s last song “Hold It Down” being so restrained is emblematic of the parent LP as a whole. It’s an album of both relaxation and restraint. It never gets truly stormy, so that’s why it works so well for a sun-kissed Hawaiian beach. Musically, it may be ideal for that sort of situation, but it’s also quite nondescript in the vocal department. While it doesn't reinvent the wheel, Bloom’s 2022 debut, Stupor, is an otherwise pleasant exercise in tranquility. Recommended.
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