The Saudades - The Saudades

The Saudades

The Saudades
self-released; 2014

3.9 out of 5

By Ethan Skelton

Once upon a time Adalia Boehne was just another misunderstood heroine of the “lost ones” within the halls of her high school. Every day was just another class in how to delay your dreams by focusing on the failed education’s system of middle America. And then, by the stroke of some small town luck, she happened upon a couple of musically gifted acquaintances via the wonderful worlds of Facebook and retail.

The Saudades play it soft, but they play with purpose. It’s an enticing concoction of hipster aura and art-indie instrumentation. I can tell that these guys are sound nerds and leave no articulation free of deliberation. The dynamics are subtle, but ranging especially on the percussive side of things. 

This self-titled EP The Saudades soon becomes an unraveling string from a dense ball of musical influence. It doesn’t sit long with any contemporary classification, but rather borrows elements from funk and dance to dictate the sway or groove within the tapestries of sound. Melody is always the sole focus, which keeps things from feeling as minimal as they really are at times – think Lorde without the electronic production. More guitar-laden tracks and less beat reliant.

For that matter, none of these tracks really feel like pop, but my favorite track does lend itself in that direction to some degree. Get a load of “Staring At Each Other.” It begins with a lilt and a small section of ¾ time just to keep a more pronounced off kilter feeling. Next on deck, however, is an infectious but rather reserved chorus. The beat is fat and on point like a slow jam. It’s not a matter of it, but when it will get you nodding your head. The brightness of that chorus is a great peak among the song’s majority holding valley. 

“Make A Scene” moves a little quicker than the others and has a more male dominant vocal, coincidentally making it darker and more melodramatic except for that guitar that still noodles in pastoral and cheery disposition. It’s that ebb and flow of positivity within drama that makes The Saudades worth investing in.

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