Review Summary: Accessible, unique indie pop full of color and verve.
Well isn’t this just a treat from the Korean pop scene. It’s not really Korean pop by the common definition actually, but wow, what a treat. It’s probably the deviance from said Korean pop scene that makes this so refreshing and unique. Really this isn’t anything like the synchronized dance ensembles of modern-day SNSD or Miss A, it is something much more playful, artsy and experimental. Little miss Deb works all by herself to achieve her charm and persona, playing all of her instruments and writing all her songs, almost towering over said K-pop artists in terms of songwriting. Granted they have different ways of going about their genre, most notably their multi-vocalist approach, stylish aesthetic and their penchant for bringing the boys out, but what Deb does all by herself is purely a labor of love. Her music doesn’t flag down avid K-pop fans, but passing this up if you have even a fleeting interest in indie pop or Korean pop would mean missing out on one sweet little pastry of an album.
From beginning to end,
Parallel Moons is completely packed with cheer. Not obnoxiously so, as there’s lots of variety in the way of moods, and it’s all done playfully and with plenty of creativity. Over the course of the album, Deb plays many different instruments ranging from accordion, synthesizer, piano, xylophone, acoustic guitar and several more, and they all fill their duties as little tools that bring the album to life like an elaborate pop-up book. It’s colorful and dainty in most every way, expressing Deb’s imagination uniquely on each of the album’s 13 tracks. She combines several different genres, but her base sound is primarily a fusion of indie pop and jazz, flirting with big-band and lounge every now and then. Her vocals can be anything between mellow and upbeat, while she’s no virtuoso her voice is smooth and not abrasive or over-the-top, or auto-tuned for that matter. She goes about doing her thing whether anyone likes it or not, but in doing so she’s created an independent sound that’s neither offensive nor flamboyant, just all her own.
