Nyteowl’s first full-length, Life, follows a string of successful EPs, including Valentine that featured heart-pumping electro-soul jams. Life adds a dark twist to those elastic synth beats – like sounds emitting from a Bladerunner nightclub.
The opening track, “Prime Ordeal”, builds a neon-lit streetscape that the next track, “Life”, strolls mournfully down while synths cascade like sheets of rain and percussion pounds like a strained heartbeat. This isn’t your grandaddy’s blues. From there, however, the mood picks up with the (perhaps cynically) shimmering refrains on “Best Day Ever” and “Trying Too Hard”, then purposefully dives into the futuristic R&B/soul ballad “EZ Boy”. The album finishes with a flourish of metallic soul with the bouncing “Wanna Cyber?”, the gritty “Cave Rave”, and calm, buzzing “Afterlife”.
Aptly titled, “Life”, expels a range of emotions that illustrate the rollercoaster ride that life indeed is. It represents the soul-felt journey through ups and downs that everyone goes through while evoking a poignantly dark, digital future.
