Fat Camp - Blue Face

Fat Camp

Blue Face​
self-released; 2017

​3.7 out of 5

By Matt Jensen

Mario Luis (guitar/vocals), Grant Gonzalez (bass) and Malone Seymore (drums) are Fat Camp. The band released Blue Face that is a complete DIY effort which embraces atmospheric indie rock/pop.

I thought the album was scattered in a couple of different ways. First off the production and recording quality varies from track to track. Overall, I thought they did a good job but there were some clear differences. Take for instance “Walk Away” which sounded somewhat thin and had an overbearing drum sound. Don't get me wrong, the song was catchy but the production fell a bit short.

I then listened to “Trapped in Your Universe” which sounded much better from an engineering perspective. There was more separation, the drums fit better in the mix and it just sounded much easier on the ears. The song and melody reminded me of a ’50s ballad but the band implements wonky synths and catchy melodies.

The next song which stuck out to me was “Raining Snow” which again has infectious melodies. I was reminded of Mac Demarco in some ways on this song. I would actually say the Mac Demarco vibe was even more obvious on “Thunderbird” although it feels like a different strain. The vocal performance was great. The only thing I would mention here is that Mac Demarco for whatever reason is one of those artists everyone is replicating at the moment and to be cognizant of comparisons.

“Goodbye Gypsy” and “Hello Life” certainly have their moments but I think “Time of Day” was a great closer. The second half explodes with an intensity and the band doesn't hold back.

The band is off to a great start. I thought the songwriting was consistently inspired and they also deliver on performance side as well. This is a band to start following with this release. 

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