Review Summary: I'll call you when I know you'll tell me what I want to hear.
First off, I am excited to be the guy to bring the LA-based indie pop artist Zeph to Sputnikmusic. I figured "closure (demos)" is the best place to start when tackling Zeph's rapidly growing catalog. The EP contains the official release of some of Zeph's older work, which was previously available only on her Youtube playlist (posted in serial a year or so ago), "little songs by me:"
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLOwoFJwfa3fmh0oF1vgCbY0dRX2mGj5-u
Now a little bit about Zeph, who is something of an internet personality, even as her music is just beginning to gain popularity. She's known for her Youtube channel, darkly funny twitter (https://twitter.com/zephanijong), and carefully curated memes on her fake instagram. A quintessial indie artist, begninning online with songs crafted through her own devices, early fans of Zeph had to be dedicated to listen to her work, enduring Youtube ads between her one to two minute "little songs." Check out this interview if you are curioius (https://www.altpress.com/zeph-character-development-interview/). She has since released 5 EPs and one short LP on streaming platforms. Zeph is notable for her consistency and sheer effort evident on every track she has released. She nearly never misses. It would be hard to point to a single song of hers that could be considered filler.
So, what does Zeph actually sound like? Imagine the infectious pop melodies of a classic band like The Stone Roses, condensed down to the bare essentials, in the style of Guided By Voices. Unlike Guided By Voices, her entire EP and LP releases are themselves condensed to the best of the best tracks. It is easy to imagine Zeph's cutting room floor littered with potential songs she had considered inadequate to be included in an offical release. The EPs and LP are very short, none of which surpass 30 minutes. Which is not to say Zeph can't finish a full length project, but moreso to emphasize that she cares about quality and doesn't seem to care about musical conventions or becoming popular with a viral hit or traditional "pop album." She focuses on short songs that never overstay their running times. The result is a smallish collection of short songs that bear a tremendous amount of replayability. The songs are easy to listen to over and over again because of not only their brevity, but also because of the quality of the music and inclusion of noise. Musically, Zeph is bolstered by the mysterious guitarist known as Awsten, who shines on the titular track of the "scared of everything" EP. The use of noise to create colorful atmospheres is noticable on the 80s teen movie themed "backseat" and the end of the new "nightmare."
Lyrically, Zeph's songs might remind you of your toxic ex-girlfriend, like the instantly memorable line from "are you?" off the 2021 EP "scared of everything:" "did you not message me cause you're busy, or because you forgot?" Beyond that, Zeph is genuinely poetic, as with the attention-seizing first line off the LP "character development": "It's cruel and unusual, the way you always keep me wondering after the fact. Just rip the band-aid off, and tell me you don't like me like that." And at a deeper level, her collection of work represents to an amazing extent self-awareness and an honest effort to work through and openly share personal issues, maybe the most explicitly on "what if?"
On to the main topic at hand, "closure (demos)." On Zeph's latest EP, in the final days of 2023, you'll find sparse, bare bones arrangements, with very catchy melodies interspersed. It is this record that pushed me over the edge to creating a Sputnikmusic page for her. What it really is about "closure" is first its accessibilty. Each individual track has its own hidden special moment. And I found that many have worked their way deep into my subconscious, with one of Zeph's melodies running through my head when waking up every morning. And the second thing about the EP is its history. Whether incidental or through careful scheming, Zeph has been building suspense for this release for years through her Youtube channel. In the style of classic indie acts like Animal Collective, Zeph pushed her devoted fans to the edges of their seats waiting for an official release of her Youtube songs. Even further, she takes the independent display a step further by the parentheses in the title, christening the thing a demo tape. Which implies to some degree that the tracks are unfinished, effectively leading me personally to lower my expectations before hitting play on the night of its unheralded release. Imagine my surprise when I found 16 enjoyable tracks with production quality on par with the best of her previous releases, and two brand new songs.
Having sufficiently hyped this record out of proportion, consider some highlights that will help back up my claims.
In order of appearance, "the view" is a quiet lofi style track with tropical strings and the instantly memorable, Youtube-famous line: "I'll be your hill to die on, but she's still the view." Another standout is the high octane track "taking one for the team," with its fast paced melody and Greek mythology allusion. Next, "but he wouldn't be you" is a timeless heartbreak song that, in the hands of a mainstream label, would have an extra verse added and the chorus repeated several more times into a self-indulgent 3 minute bore, instead maintains a sensible two minute running time with simple acoustic accompiament. Don't feel guilty enjoying it. Finally, "nightmare" is notable for its noisy ending.
I hope you will give Zeph a listen.
See also:
Hanbee,
Sundial,
EASHA.
