Effortlessly and infectiously calming.
In Airports, the newest release from Orchid Mantis, hides its melancholy behind easygoing production and dreamlike vocals – allowing listeners the choice of adopting the same feelings for 50 minutes at a time or imposing their own.
“Comedown Phase,” the second of 15 tracks and the album’s lead single, is full of uncertainty and insecurity. Still, the silky smooth vocals delivered by Thomas Howard create the perfect atmosphere to get lost in. This creates both an artistic outlet for the singer and an escapist sanctuary for the listener. With lyrics like “Didn’t you say / you’re stuck in the clouds / waiting for you / to come back down,” one would think the end result is something that evokes the same longing desire being spoken about. Orchid Mantis, though, does something interesting and emphasizes the production over the lyrics and vocals, which is the exact recipe needed to create such a beautiful escapist album.
Orchid Mantis also has the rare opportunity to boast about perfect features. Lillie Weeks on track one and Marina Yozora on track four both perfectly encapsulate the feeling emanating from the rest of the album while still managing to put their own spins on it for a gorgeous combination of typical, thematic Orchid Mantis and new, exciting voices.
“Generation Loss” uses Weeks’ bright and airy voice to bookend Howard’s deeper, masculine voice. Yet, again, the vocals aren’t even the best part, because the guitar is so hypnotic that it manages to eclipse attention from everything else.
“On Your Mind” has a similar effect, as it sees Yozora operating at her best. As both artists exist in the dreampop world, their vocal tones match up beautifully for gorgeous harmonies littered throughout the entire song. Not only that, but with a minute-long instrumental introduction, listeners can’t help but become immersed in the world of “On Your Mind” as soon as it begins.
Immediately after “On Your Mind” is another album standout, the seven-minute “Falling Back Asleep.” With only three stanzas of lyrics, one may think this song would tire itself out and end up in the experimental long song graveyard. The way it circumvents this, though, is the same method being employed throughout the rest of the album, intensely atmospheric production. With echotones bouncing from ear to ear and new aspects of the same instruments always being experimented with, this song is best appreciated with noise cancelling headphones and closed eyes. “Falling Back Asleep” brings its listeners along as it relives a past relationship, yet it avoids the all-encompassing sadness that typically comes with that. Instead, with such little lyrics, Orchid Mantis allows listeners to pick their own journey and get lost in their own worlds as he gets lost in his.
“In The Dawn” allows Howard to showcase his vocal strength in, arguably, the loudest song on the album.
The closing track, “Strange Heaven,” takes its album-adjourning status and runs with it, bringing in sonorous guitar and resounding vocals to close out the album with a bang.
In Airports could easily be swept under the rug as another small indie artist’s shoegaze confessional. But to do so would be a tragedy, as so many people would miss out on Howard’s blissful voice and alluring production.
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