EP Review: Esbie Fonte - 'Cemetery Drive'
Esbie Fonte combines surreal, dark aesthetics with a quirky contemporary kick on new EP, ‘Cemetery Drive’.
’Cemetery Drive’ opens with previously reviewed singles, ‘Veins’ and ‘Rosie’ before launching into ‘Here Lies’, a track lyrically consumed with imagery surrounding death. Esbie often unveils narrative in broken fragments that are veiled and coded containing messages only she knows. But then there’s also bursts of profound reflection as noted in lyrics like, “no one’s going to save you from yourself on your last day”. Therefore, when you read between the whimsy and the dark, dreamy distractions, ‘Cemetery Drive’ is a self-aware record concerned with reflection, fighting demons, bouncing back and growth.
Sonically, ‘Here Lies’ taps into the ironic playfulness that we’ve become used. The track opens with tension before the arrangements take on a more whacky, laid-back form, making light of the darker lyrics which are delivered through Esbie’s breathy potent vocal. ‘Piggy Bank’ opens with surreal fairground feeling and is arguably the most surreal and dream-like song on the EP. This track rounds off the EP with a sense of celebration and lots of experimentation. Here, Esbie steps away from gloomy narratives and instead weaves samples through more upbeat lyrics, creating a trippy soundscape that David Lynch would probably like to dance to on his birthday.
’Cemetery Drive’ is an exciting and eclectic batch of tunes, cleverly created to tap into how illogical, morbid and contradictory life can be. Give it a whirl below!
Words of Karla Harris