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Lucrecia Dalt — ¡Ay!
(RVNG Intl. RVNGNL85, 2022, CD / LP / DL)

Lucrecia Dalt — The Baby (Original Score)
(RVNG Intl. no#, 2022, DL)

by Jon Davis, Published 2023-01-08

¡Ay! Cover artThe Baby (Original Score) Cover art

With a kaleidoscopic blend of abstract electronics, latin rhythms, spooky horns, and trippy vocals, Colombian artist Lucrecia Dalt (real name María Lucrecia Pérez López) has produced one of the year’s standout experimental albums in ¡Ay! While various aspects of the recording may resemble familiar sounds, they’re mixed together in a wholly original and enticing way. Dalt’s breathy singing and laid-back melodies are reminiscent of classic Brazilian music of the 60s and 70s; some of the atmospheres sound like something from a 70s spy movie, maybe a scene where a character has been dosed with a psychedelic drug and all the scenery is twisted into swirling confusion; some of the arrangements for wind instruments, bass clarinet in particular, might bring to mind the NYC downtown scene; and the quirky analog electronics have a touch of Suzanne Ciani. Dalt’s voice is seductive, and the occasional spoken parts don’t spoil the mood. Most of the tracks feature grooves built up with upright bass and percussion, but not a drum kit, and they lope along with an easy energy that’s truly infectious. The combination of earthy percussion and electronics creates the science-fictional aura of a spaceship landing in a remote forest. Dalt evokes a psychedelic realm using stark clarity rather than gauzy obscurity.

Dalt’s soundtrack to The Baby is generally more stripped-down sonically, with more weight given to the synthesizers. The 29 tracks are almost all quite short, ranging from less than 20 seconds to around a minute and a half, and consist of electronic sounds (often not especially musical in nature), with occasional excursions into vocals and percussion. Given the nature of this music, there’s not a lot in the way of development — the ideas are tossed out, bop along for a short time, then end, making way for the next idea. I haven’t seen the show, which is described as a “horror-comedy,” but from the creepiness of many of the sounds, I’m guessing the horror element is greatly enhanced by Dalt’s score. As a work standing on its own, it is somewhat interesting, but ¡Ay! is certainly the place to start when investigating this unique artist.

Filed under: New releases, 2022 releases

Related artist(s): Lucrecia Dalt

More info
http://lucreciadalt.bandcamp.com/album/ay

 

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