O Louco – Fama (Album Review)

One thing I do find fascinating and riveting about music is the ability to transmit information, thoughts, ideas and themes through a simple medium. Lyrics are a part of most songs, but not a necessity to the scope of thought involving music. Often, it is the melodic variation in lyrics that draws us to recite it and remember it so vividly- or even, the way lyrics are sung can be translated into musical notes itself. If you do understand the lexicon of what certain lyrics entail, it is a plus point as it merges the art of sound with the art of linguistics. 

In today’s review, I am entering uncharted territory with an album called Fama by O Louco. O Louco, an artist fresh to anyone’s memory and recognition, is a self-proclaimed chameleon of Portuguese music. Through his artistic imagery and simply his aesthetic, I can see where that comes from. He gives off the feel of an artist inspired by David Bowie, who once described his state space in music as that of a chameleon. 

The album, ‘Fama’, translated to ‘Fame’ in English, explores the dark side as a complement to the starry-eyed perspective often characterising fame. As part of its stylistic theme, it expands upon that theme by branching out to hedonistic vices typically surrounding those under the guise of fame, such as drug use, alcoholism and depression. However, as this album is lyrically entirely in Portuguese, I will be reviewing this album with the same credence stated in my first paragraph- I am going to find out if Fama stands the test of universality with its level of musical competency. Language should never be a barrier to music, music speaks more than syntaxes ever will. I will also analyse the lyrics separately, and see how they match up with the musical soundscape as more so than musical universality, the tone of lyrics should also match the domain it is intended to be in.

The first quarter of the album is frankly not promising. It starts off with a  MIDI-heavy pseudo-dramatic intro that sounds quite cheesy, almost as if it were a backing track to a low-budget horror film. The intro then fades out into a track called ‘It Girl’, which sounds promising at first due to its electro-influenced swing but simply gets offset by how displaced the pads and cymbals sound. It then morphs into a torturous ‘i-will-warn-you’ balled singing style, which really does not help any form of likeability in regards to this track. It sounds like a bad parody of one of Lady Gaga’s earlier works. I genuinely do like the electronic soundscape, the swing, and the hypersaws, but the generic choice of notes in the melodies (both vocal and instrumental) really ruins the song. I wish people would have more creative variation when it comes to music involving themes that are perceived as ‘spooky’ or as a ‘dangerous warning’. Like its title, it doesn’t have any more redeeming qualities than the song with the same name from AliyahsInterlude. However, I do find the lyrics extremely interesting as it explore the superficial concept and obsession with the concept of an ‘It Girl’ in society in pretty much vivid detail.

O Louco definitely shines as well as a lyricist more so than a vocalist or even a ‘melodist’, as his writing style is extremely unique and introspective. Most lyrics in songs these days are extremely void of viable content and are usually filled with delusions or simple gibberish. O Louco does stand out in the sense that he uses his pen as a sword to wield through reality, albeit with a bias to the confines of the entertainment industry and personal experience itself, in a competent manner. In terms of writing, this passes off as descriptive poetry.

The song afterwards, ‘Fama’, is not any better. It is a slow ballad with horribly parsed-out hypersaws. The tone of the singer does not help the song at all. I cannot find any redeeming qualities of this track, other than the fact that it does have multiple audio track layers- but it comes out genuinely sounding like a coming-of-age theme song to a mid-00s soap opera. The choice of synthesis in this song also sounds extremely dated. 

To make things worse, ‘Amor Sintético Natural’ sounds like a ballad at the cadence of a Chinese ’Ah Beng’ EDM song. It has potential as a track with absolutely no vocals, but the vocalist truly ruins the soundscape with his whiny crooning. This is an instance where juxtaposition in music simply doesn’t work. I genuinely adore the electronic soundscape of the song, though. It stands on its own. Does it need a little bit of polishing and mastering? Yes, but the tempo changes and melodic changes adds an oomph to the song that is totally unexpected and displays musical variability. I would definitely recommend the artist to release the instrumental to this song. Once again, as unpromising as the song actually is, the lyrics to the song as quite fascinating in its choice of words as well as analogies. I must say though, the analogies are quite predictable when it comes to the topic of love and obsession itself.

‘Estatuto Social’ follows the exact same format of the previous songs- a somewhat competent electronic soundscape, with the artist’s intent and vocal choices completely ruining the song. If the vocals were not added, it has the potential to turn into a Cardopusher song. However, in the bridge of the song. It employs a completely acoustic soundscape, which suits the vocalist’s timbre better. Is it another case in which an overambitious person thinks their voice matches a hyper-electro soundscape without any form of vocoder manipulation?

I pose that question, because in the second quarter of the album, more ambient and acoustic techniques are employed and the vocalists’ vocals do not conflict with the soundscape at all. It is a really interesting thing to ponder when I come across artists such as these: a unique situation where their vocals do not shine in an electronic track, but can definitely have a presence acoustically. Is it due to a misdiagnosis of the limitations of their voice relative to what they artistically wished to display?

‘Aquele Beijo’, starts off in a sleepy ballad manner with sparks of acoustic instrumentation in terms of the choice of guitar used, as well as the percussive elements. I must say, the vocalist’s more tender delivery seems more passable in this track, compared to the other tracks. However, the song is merely passable- the chord structure is extremely predictable. It sounds like any other soft ballad straddling the lines of soft rock and heartfelt instrumentation. Moreover, the background singers and the singer himself does not actually stay in tune while they attempt to harmonise. If the other tracks were abhorrent, this track is passable.

Continuing with the theme of a more organic style of instrumentation, ‘Reality Show’ starts off with chords that give off the sound of a mystery, or a question, and follows up with a blues groove. The vocalist employs more of a ‘distressed’ croon in this song, and his tender yet fragile timbre is a treat to the ears compared to his other vocal styles. The instrumentation in this song is also very apt and well-done, with the choice of notes almost reminiscent of other neo-blues songs. The descending and ascending notes give off the impression of dread as well as exhaustion, and the tender sprinkle of hyper futuristic synthesisers in what I assume to be under a ‘love filter’ helps to give character to this song. This is definitely the first song worthy of a decent listen in this album. In this song, the excellent lyricism enhances the song as it paints a highly descriptive scene of the aftereffects and the aftermath of appearing on a reality show itself. It stands as a tale of caution.

After the high of the last song, ‘Estrada Interminável’ is truly a letdown. It follows the exact same musical issues detailed in ‘Aquele Beijo’, but worse, as the structure of the song is even more generic than the previous one. 

‘Has De Ser’, the 9th track, is a very strange track to me. The vocal delivery and production quality of the song are not up-to-par, once again sounding as if it was the work of a bar singer,, but I find some extremely interesting compositional quirks in this one. There are elements of grunge in this song, accented with elements of synths in EDM. I find this combination very unique, and it should definitely be explored more.

‘Nas Minhas Mãos’ is one of the much better songs on this album. It starts sombre, and heartfelt, with the vocalist once again shining because his delivery is more subtle and softer in this approach. My only critique with the first part of the song is the choice of sound for the piano, as I think it sounds too ‘innocently tender’ and clashes with the cinematic grief in the ambient sounds stretched out towards the end of the song. The ambient sounds are extremely genius. They fade out almost in a space-age doom manner.

‘Será Que Este Noite’ follows the same brilliance of the previous track, exploring more of an electronic, futuristic soundscape with robust drumming. The singer employs the same subtle vocal techniques that definitely go in his favour. I like how the chord structure and the synthesizers used keep you on edge during the pre-chorus and the versus, but it completely ‘bubbles’ out and bursts in a symphony of futurism in the chorus. Definitely a must-listen for this album.

The next song, ‘Estranho O Sonho’ starts off extremely promising with the synthesis of the song and once again, its homage to electronic music, but the choice of pads and percussion throw me off. Also, the problem of generic chord structure in regards to portraying ‘edginess’ in the vocalisation and melody props up again in this track, ruining it slightly. This is another track where it really should’ve been a standalone instrumental track. It has all the elements of a good electronic track, with polyphonic synthesizers, build-up, musical and instrumental variability. I do think this song is worth a listen due to how technologically forward it sounds.

All the tracks in this album with a party EDM cadence have to be evaluated with suspicion. ‘Perdidos No Ecrã’ somehow seems to morph the problems of ‘Amor Sintético Natural’ with the problems of ‘Aquele Beijo’. Of course, some aspects of the song sound interesting with the sparks of automation clips added in and the melodic variation, but I’m not evaluating parts of the song, and neither am I evaluating the stems of the song. It just does not gel well together in the song.

‘Viajante Eterno’, afterwards, sounds like it is going for the soundscape of ‘spookiness’ but unfortunately gets washed out by how cheesy the notes and the sound effects are. It sounds like what an early-80s production would’ve conjured up for a ‘spooky’, low-budget indie film. It then degrades into the same, generic soft rock ballad swing that I’ve heard throughout the album without anything to necessarily grab my attention. I think this sounds like an unfinished song to me. The theme of the song definitely has potential and does have some compositional quirks, but it needs to be refined.

‘Meu Mundo, Meu Amor’ starts off as an extremely peppy and quirky ballad. It is not my cup of tea, but it does remind me of some positive rock songs from the late 60s to the early 70s. In terms of production, it is one of the most ‘okay’ ones. It sounds like a low-budget version of ‘Queen’. I will say, for once in this album, the harmonisation actually works between the main vocals and the background vocals. This is a song I can envision being used in the background of a quirky film that explores growing pains. Around the mark at 2 minutes and 36 seconds, the song morphs into a sequence that reminds me of trance which is unexpected yet pleasant. Another song that I’d recommend from this album. I think the lyrics to this song is definitely one of the strongholds of this album, as the lyrics are a poetic piece by itself as a testament to love. If Atlas’ domain was love, I’m pretty sure he would’ve penned lyrics analogous to this.

‘Nada Em Ti’ has a great acoustic chord structure in its initial instrumentation, as well as manipulation of certain sounds, to give it a quirk, but the vocalist’s delivery once again ruins it. The chorus also has a chord structure that I cannot take seriously. Like most songs on the album, the producer adds some very interesting quirks towards the end of the song to save it- this time, electronic pizzicatos against a drop of acoustic guitars. A drop of genius in a sea of mediocrity.

‘Pó De Anjo’, ‘Perder O Norte E O Ego’, ‘Dias Desertos’ as well as ‘Um Passo No Céu’ to end the album in its final quarter, all pose the exact same problems highlighted in most of the initial 16 tracks. As a listener, and as a reader, it feels absolutely redundant for me to explore the soundscape of a work of art that doesn’t change in terms of its flaws. 

Another huge problem that I have with this album, in terms of the quality of the tracks already established and with the predictability of the standard of most of the tracks, I find the duration of this album a little torturous- especially for a breakout or a newbie artist. The theme of the album may have been lyrically cohesive, but as a musical medium meant to be universal, it dances between borderline irritating and unevolving. In terms of the lyrics as an isolate entity, the artist shows an extreme competence when it comes to writing.

The star of the album is truly the production value, compositional value as well as the mastering. The biggest problem of this album is the vocals, and the cohesiveness of the musical factors for the most part. If I’m not mistaken, the singer is also the producer of the album. As a producer, he has immense potential in how he infuses aspects of EDM, such as electronica and trance in other genres such as grunge, blues and acoustic mellowness but he falls short of vocal delivery as well as execution. I think he should work on his strengths in terms of musical instrumentation, as the intent for some of the backing tracks for some of these tracks are truly interesting. Moreover, his lyrical writing abilities are stellar. All of the lyrics on the album would definitely count as standalone writing pieces or poetry piece by themselves. The only reason why I can’t just promote the track based on the instrumental is because the vocals were intentionally added, hence, as a whole entity it is misaligned.

All in all, this album was not necessarily a great musical experience as a newbie listener to this artist. It started off quite terribly, with most of the saving graces of the album being in the middle or towards the end of the album, which isn’t good from a business and a neurological perspective as I highly doubt most listeners would persist beyond five tracks, if the initial five tracks perform poorly. Moreover, the lyrics are not entirely accessible unless requested. For better outreach as well as response, I’d recommend that the artist popularise a medium or a webpage to display his excellent lyrical skills in both Portuguese as well as English for the rest of his potential audience to come across. My most recommended songs from the album are ‘Meu Mundo, Meu Amor’, ‘Será Que Este Noite’ and ‘Reality Show’.

Score/Mediocre: Fama by O Louco is an album that does not musically perform up to standard, with 3 out of 20 songs truly being listenable. The plus points of this album are definitely some compositional quirks as well as excellent lyricism, but it does not stick out immediately as a cohesive album. It bears too many predictable as well as outdated musical techniques, for an act that isn’t a revivalist act. It should’ve been broken down into smaller parts for better execution.

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