Review Summary: Good electro-pop that brings a social message along with it.
In this age where electronic music is slowly becoming predominant, there seems that a strange phenomenon is developing. There seems to be less and less of good electro-pop, electro-pop that relies on the traditions of the early Eighties boom like The Human League, Orchestral Manoeuvres in The Dark, Kraftwerk, and many others. These days the music based on electronics, for better or for worse, is going mostly in the direction of EDM in all its shapes and forms or ambient. No wonder that fans who want some melody and song shape and form are turning back to those older stalwarts. Most newer artists exploring such a sound seem to be few and far between.
Based on his second release, The Wall, Philadelphia’s David Thompson is one of the artists that want to fill that widening gap. Social worker and organizer by day, and studio recluse that does everything himself by night, Thompson seems to be on the right track here.
When the COVID-19 lockdown hit, Thompson decided to re-visit some of the material he was working on previously and put it in some sense and order that would fit the times. “The Wall” in many ways reflects both his love of good melody, electro sound, and what he does in his day job. Sounds corny when written down, but it actually works!
Thompson obviously has a few more influences than just good old Eighties electro. Add to that list Springsteen's sense of melody and David Byrne's sense of progression. He is able to craft the five tunes on this EP into a danceable, melodic electro-pop, and if you listen to a bit more carefully, you can hear that Thompson has a sizeable book library that includes such writers as Franz Kafka and Wallace Stevens.
Although his message(s) might be a bit heavy for some, they certainly can’t deny him the fact that he can really craft a good (electro) melody.
