Malka – I’m Not Your Soldier (Tantrum
Malka - I'm Not Your Soldier
Records)
Release Date: 28th February 2020
Well, here it is. The third album
from Malka (the solo project of Tamara Schlesinger) is here and it is a belter. ‘I’m
Not Your Soldier’ comes with the trademark attention to detail in terms of the
images and accompanying videos but all that is just glitter in the cold
Scottish wind when compared to the music so let’s get down to business shall
we? The album opens somewhat ominously on ‘A New World’, a song that clitters
and clatters into life with scattered percussion and electro drones before that
trademark impish vocal joins in with beautiful clarity. It’s a strong start
that immediately puts you in mind of Kimbra or Bat For Lashes but without a
hint of copy-catisms, it’s just that the creativity and delivery is right up
there.
‘Get Up’ continues the percussion
vs electro melodies theme which runs throughout this album with a playful energy
and the kind of vibe that makes you want to skip down the sidewalk stopping
only to join in with some jump rope or to steal some candy floss from an old
guy making it fresh on the street. On ‘I Know, You Know’ Malka makes excellent
of a rhythm section that takes control over your neck muscles, such is the quality
of the groove that she sings over with those sweet, sweet vocal chords. Things
take a turn for the darker on ‘Taking It Back’ which has a more futuristic vibe
that feels like First Aid Kit and Janelle Monae collaborating with LCD
Soundsystem in the production booth. Latest single ‘Moving Together’ is utterly
joyful with it’s baggy beats and junkyard melodies which will put a smile on
even the hardiest of glowering faces.
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| Malka - pacifist chic |
The thing with Malka is that she
is not a follower of fashions or trends and it’s even hard to define where she
fits in but that is, of course, what makes her music so utterly delicious. Take
‘Don’t Leave Me’, for instance, a song that is comprised of so many flavours
and tastes that it becomes addictively moreish as you taste the pop of the
beats and the silky smoothness of the bass line. ‘I’m Not Invisible’ has the
qualities of a CBeebies montage put together by Goldfrapp and Moloko while ‘Don’t
Believe It’ has a more American feel which would suit the soundtrack of a new
Netflix series if anyone’s interested. The tempo changes on ‘Tiny Fires’ which
slinks and slithers like an electric eel, curling it’s way towards you with
more than a glint in it’s eye and a bit of latter-day Muse in the inspiration
tank.
On the home straight we get ‘Hardly
Sleep’, another percussively lively and beautiful song with chunky horns, and ‘Seize
the Moment’ which is the most organic sounding track on the album with sparse instrumentation
aside from the near-tribal percussion. The last of the 12 tracks is ‘Close Your
Eyes’, a delicate lullaby played out with soft organ keys and a finely spun
hair’s breadth of a vocal that leads you on into the land of dreams. Malka is
truly unique and an eminently creative force which is sorely needed these days
but what’s even more wondrous is that this album is imbued with such joy, positivity
and playfulness at a time when it is short supply.
More information: https://www.facebook.com/malkamakesmusic/
Live Dates:
6th March – Stereo, Glasgow
12th March – Macarts, Galashiels
13th March – The Eagle Inn, Salford
14th March – The Victoria, Dalston w/Seaker
1st May – Pavilhao de Exposicoes do Anhemni, Sao
Paolo