EP Review: Chapel – 'Room Service'

Getting a point across in as few words as possible can be a difficult task, after all, Twitter upped its character count for good reason. On new EP ‘Room Service’, Chapel introduces the world to their danceable sound in less than 10 minutes, and it works surprisingly well. From bass-driven opener ‘Pillow Talk’ to nostalgia-clad closing number ‘First Love’ Chapel create a space dominated by soaring melodies and sparkling electronica.

Carried by inviting vocals and R’n’B inflected rhythms, there is no hiding from the duo’s dangerously infectious touch. Whether they’re losing themselves to the euphoria of an emotive chorus or wade through a moody piano track, Chapel thrill with an air-tight formula of easily accessible beats and catchy riffs. Blending this carefree atmosphere with a straight-from-the-heart lyricism, ‘Room Service’ speaks not only of the band’s eye for detail but their honest approach to songwriting. “Sometimes in the back of your head you hope you and your first love work out. If not at the beginning maybe later in the future,” the duo says of ‘First Love’. “Most of the time the reality is it doesn’t ever work out and although it doesn’t you both will always share this weird bond together.”

Though it spans only four tracks, ‘Room Service’ is a homerun of an EP. Fun-filled and highly streamable without sounding complacent or basic, it gives Chapel an assertive boost on their journey to pop stardom.

Words by Laura Freyaldenhoven

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