A New Album From Richard Berger Is Here
A new album release from Richard Berger has no problem delivering a variety of pop soundscapes that all breed hints of honesty letting the artist give little pieces of himself with most tracks, and it comes with a very lush and full-bodied songwriting approach with an array of instrumentation both natural and digital that come together to create atmospheres that you end up really loving.
The Retrovert album is an expansive and vast sort of contemporary pop that also breeds elements of alternative and dream pop throughout its course, and this is one of those records where you need to listen to the entire thing to get the full spectrum of what it has to offer.
You get everything from heartfelt sort of ballads to disco pop and colorful tracks that burst out with a lively personality, and everything in between so, you have this outstanding dynamic balance throughout this record.
Some of the stuff that I really love about this release is more the smooth sort of contemporary pop songs because these feature such a unique sense of vocal approaches.
For example, one track in particular called "Why Does It Have To Take So Long" has such a cool character to it, and although it is lush in its approach with instrumentation with textures blending together, it still has this silky flow to it that keeps everything forward moving and also very inventive bordering on experimental.
I adore those elements working together because the way he writes the songs lets the instruments and vocals complement each other very well.
Some songs feel like he's using his vocals as an instrument themselves and using them to layer a wonderful melody on top of the sounds you're hearing and this does indeed lend a lot of hooks that end up sticking with you for a long time after songs have ended.
All in all, this was an extremely satisfying album. It served as an amazing escape because the record pulls you away from wherever you are and puts you in a whole different world filled with a smooth but vivacious set of colors and sounds that swim around in the air surrounding you. Hence, you end up becoming engulfed in this whole thing.
The use of keys and synths is essential on this record because a lot of it is based on those digital sounds and he uses natural instrument patches in combination with those as well as insane baselines half the time that keep the songs in such a forward-moving state.
This record works on so many levels and you also get those hints of personality and honesty throughout some songs so, you're getting the best of a few different worlds on this one.
Although you can tell there was a lot of intricacy and attention to detail in the creation of the album, you can also tell that there are elements of improvisation and a little bit of looseness giving the whole thing an in-the-moment feel at times.
The synth pads create ambiance, the baselines and beats create grooves, and the vocals create Melodies and words to latch onto so that you can get a better understanding of these different chapters from the artist's life.
It's all very wonderfully woven and built but more importantly, it's got charisma, it's got heart, a sense of freedom, and you listen to it and feel like this is where Richard is in his zone.
When he's in that studio doing his thing, there are no walls built around his creation and he's free to build whatever sounds he wants and sing whatever words he wants.
It's something that's got fewer boundaries than what you may be used to and is still extremely colorful and catchy.
The whole thing is super danceable and I will suggest once again listening to the album in full so you're getting everything you are meant to get from it.
Check this out as soon as you can and see how it affects you.
