Sounds like…
The heady best of 90’s pop-rock.
The review
When I first heard ‘The Art of Pretending’, the debut release by Laur Elle, I was instantly taken back to the halcyon days of 1990’s pop-rock. Whilst Laur doesn’t rock out fully across her five-track EP, its the mixture of synths and pop sensibilities around her that make her stand out. There is a certain Natalie Imbruglia quality about her music but with today’s instruments.
The EP opens in bold and blinding fashion with the quickfire and rocking ‘Out of Love’. The simple intro gives way to a pulsing explosion of beats and noise as the track escalates quickly. Nothing quite hits that ferocity afterwards but instead, Laur Elle switches out the loud and brash for smooth drum loops, synths and rubbery guitars instead. There is plenty of Delta Goodrem, Ellie Golding inspired tech fun but the musician it reminds me of most is Eurovision sensation, Loreen. Laur Elle has a similar timbre of voice and adult version of Europop that just flips together. Whether that is the glittery power ballad of ‘B.E.S.T.’, the dream-pop embers of ‘Wallflower’ or the 80’s guitar plucks and striding beats of ‘July’. They all fit that ‘good mature pop’ vibe that Loreen was going for that strikes a balance between ‘Aww I’m sad now’ and ‘Imma gonna dance tonight’. The sole track that leads strictly towards dancing is ‘All That We Didn’t’. Whilst the lyrics are sad, the beat and synth are choppy and bouncy. It makes it perfect for radio play and should continue to gain Laur thousands of followers.
Laur Elle has a great sound that mixes up sad chords, a warm and confident voice and a strong pop direction that isn’t afraid to be emotional too. Much better than the average pop sensation and happy to shift decades of influences around her sound palette, this is a strong debut EP.
Recommended track: July
Support Higher Plain Music
Higher Plain Music is part of the Higher Plain Network – a one-man indie media project. If you like what I do, please consider supporting me via Patreon for as little as $1/£1 a month. In return, you’ll receive additional perks for supporting me, such as behind-the-scenes content and free downloads. You can also donate using PayPal. Sharing the website helps too or using the affiliate buy now links on reviews. I receive a few pence per Amazon sale. All your support will enable me to produce better content, more often. I’d love to make this a full-time media network and your support can make that happen. Thank you.
Laur Elle - The Art of Pretending
