Talos/ Eoin French re-released his elecronic-pop debut album, ‘Wild Alee‘ on Friday 15th June, along with a bonus EP, ‘Then There Was War‘, with both releases capturing his delicate but impactful approach to his extremely personal lyrics.
The architect-come-musician favours a mellow approach to electronic music, but this isn’t to say his music isn’t powerful. Love song, Odyssey, fills your ears with a strong bass drum, carefully chosen chords, and his ever chilling voice before building into an electronic soundscape. With layer upon layer of wonderfully composed trills and runs, carefully composed beats, and airy falsetto vocals, it’s a song that really hits you, and definitely one that stands out on the album.
Although most songs are more slow burners, this doesn’t hinder his variety. Talos shines at his brightest in songs like ‘Contra‘ and ‘This is us Colliding‘, as well as in ‘209‘ and the haunting, piano-heavy ‘Piece[s]‘. The album as a whole is broken up by slower and more stripped-back songs, serving as interludes, but they’re every bit as atmospheric as the more upbeat tunes. This album is incredibly well thought out, making it difficult to believe it’s a debut at all – the three years spent crafting this clearly paid off.
‘Tethered Beats‘ pulses along, immersing you in rhythmic drones that strip back for more rhythmic vocals, creating waves of bigger sounds that then diminish, before gently easing you into a stunning soundscape. The rest of the album follows suit, coming to a peak with ‘Voices’, showing Talos as melodic and raw as ever, closing the album like the end of a story.
While ‘Wild Alee’ is an ambitious and optimistic look to the future, the EP ‘Then There Was War’ is almost an antithesis, with a darker tone. Whilst musically similar, the EP takes on self-destruction and more sinister themes. Odyssey Part II is far from the love song predecessor, as it focuses on emptiness.
Talos has more than proven himself with this debut, and you can catch him live later this year here.
(Photo by Brendan Canty)