FUNCTIONALITY

Roman Spektor is a multi-instrumentalist from Israel who actually entered the experimental/art pop scene by initially being attracted to rap music and making his own beats. This inspired him to a career as an audio engineer which in turn expanded his own personal style, which he shares with us in his quirky, first full-length album called 'Functionality', released in April of 2020.

The style on this album is a definite alternative sound to it, but with a surprisingly deep sense of instrumentation that creates a somewhat stark, dark and at times unsettling aura around this album. You can hear his initial influences in the trip-hoppy sound of 'Thank You Father', and the solid percussion sound reflects that in various parts of the album. But one cannot deny the heavy atmosphere that the album continuously teeters on in the title track, a song that constantly and effectively builds tension that you expect to explode at any minute. This does eventually resolve itself when guest Gali Spektor brings in an alto saxophone to smooth over the unsettling tone that takes the place of that explosion and it works well.

Roman also does his own vocals here, and his voice tends to increase the alternative effect of the music. His voice is definitely one that is unique and recognizable. It works well for the music, but one can't help but wish for a bit more of an emotional side to his singing. It does help to bring in some female vocals with Didi S.B. guesting on the 3rd track 'Look for'.'. The lyrics can be hard hitting, but the 'level-headed' style of the vocals can tend to weaken the impact the lyrics should have. No doubt that Spektor is a great songwriter. In the track 'Passivity', Roman's voice does suddenly get angrier, and that helps drive the song forward giving it more depth. This helps the track stand out a lot more.

Personally, I don't mind the alternative edge to any music. It gives a nice unique sound to the more complex tracks like 'Selling Doors'. The nice thing here is that Spektor does not fall into the trap of sounding like 'Radiohead' and being accused of copying their sound because his music continues its unique sound. However, with Gali returning to guest on this track, the saxophone is underutilized especially when it was needed for more variety at this point of the album. One of the strong points in his music is the use of acoustic guitar in some of the tracks including the closer 'Cut the Cool Air'. The mix of organic guitar and programmed (and surprisingly complex) percussion actually works well here.

I can hear a good amount of originality in Spektor's music, and his lyrical ability is excellent. The major issue with the album is in its 'even' feel. More dynamics is definitely needed here. It is such a major issue that it knocks the album down a notch. Otherwise, the quirky, dark and occasionally complex rhythms will at least keep the progressive listener interested. Even though the album is weak in the dynamic department, it is still an indication that Roman Spektor is a name to watch for in the years to come. The album will give you a sense that this is an artist that shows a lot of promise in his talents to become an important name in art pop and progressive style.

This is the debut album from Israeli singer and multi-instrumentalist Roman Spektor, although he did release an EP, 'Moss', back in 2016. Here he provides everything apart from Gali Spektor who plays alto saxophone on two songs and Didi S.B. who provides additional vocals on another. This is a very modern jagged take on progressive rock, combining electronica with XTC, prog with pop, and even bringing in folk at times. Often at the core is more of a hip-hop rhythm, which definitely gives the music a different flavour to much of what is currently around. His vocals are also more of an indie/alterative style, less emotional and more one-dimensional.

In many ways that is also how I feel about the album. Although there is actually a lot going on, and there are some interesting counterpoints between stringed instruments and electronic, it somehow keeps quite shallow and as a listener I felt I was never immersed in what was going on, but rather paddling through and splashing as opposed to being enveloped. It is brittle as opposed to solid, and in many ways quite unsettling as I could never really relax into what was going. Not truly experimental, nor fitting in with any standard styles, it is something which needs to be listened to, and for me having done so I am unlikely to do so again.

[Originally published at The Progressive Aspect]

For three years, Roman Spektor has been working on his debut album, Functionality. It was released at the end of April and is Roman's first release since the three track Moss EP released in January 2016. That EP showed the willingness for Spektor to experiment with quite different sounds and styles, but didn't really work for me. There was definite promise, but much of it sounded forced and unnatural and didn't sit well with me. I found the first track to be almost hard to listen to, and not particularly enjoyable. The title track was far more to my liking, and the final track quite nice, even when it explodes towards the end. As Meatloaf once sang, 'two out of three ain't bad', so I made a mental note to remember Spektor's name, should I ever see it again. So when I came across Functionality this year, my first thoughts were to wonder which of the three songs from Moss it might sound most like. The answer is none of them ' or, perhaps it is actually that first track, which didn't gel with me years ago. But everything not quite right with Calm Waters is made right with Functionality.

The opening track, Checkbox, bursts into being with a sound immediately reminiscent for me of bands Chris Pitman has had a hand in, particularly SexTapes for whom he was the frontman. Pitman is perhaps unfortunately best known for being one of the longest serving members of Guns N' Roses, but he's an incredibly talented multi-instrumentalist, engineer and producer that has lent his talents in one capacity or another to Tool, Failure, Lusk, Replicants and Zaum, among others. This is an electro-industrial-grunge banger, heightened by Roman Spektor's suitably grungy and glitchy vocals. This is like some glorious mix of Failure, Nine Inch Nails, Alice in Chains and Portishead.

Roman Spektor began his musical journey with hip hop, making his own beats, and those roots have clearly never left him, lending this album hints of hip-hop and trip-hop throughout, adding variation and interest to an already intriguing eclecticism. The trip hop may be in the background on Checkbox, but it's far more overt in the following Thank You Father. And yet, there's a distinct neo prog vibe to this track too. So, alternative trip-hop neo prog? Do you know what, I'm really not bothered if I can't pin this music down to any particular genre. Roman Spektor delights in not only effortlessly switching between styles throughout the album, but overlapping them within a song. That the whole still sounds so cohesive and coherent is quite a feat.

Look For' continues the trip hop vibe, and also features guest vocalist Didi S.B.. Her vocals are truly beautiful and bring an extra dimension to the song. This impact is heightened by the vocals not being immediately introduced, the 'beauty and the beast' harmonies particularly effective. Binary, which follows, sounds like it belongs in a soundtrack, and reminds me a lot of another trip- hop infused album from this year, Romsam Malpica's The Wolf and the Skull (as The Folsom Project). It segues into the title track, which initially sounds equally cinematic, until the chorus hits.

Although I actually very much like Functionality (the song), it does show the only real negative for me with Functionality (the album). The dynamic range just doesn't seem great enough, the whole album sounds remarkably 'even' (for lack of a better word). The title track ought to leap from its quiet moments to its roars with far greater effect and impact. There are several other songs where I feel the dynamics could be improved upon, including the following Tiny Virtual Mouths, which is minimalist and delicate ' but not quiet enough. Ultimately, however, none of this really spoils the enjoyment that the album gives. There is more than enough promise to assume that future albums from Spektor will definitely be worth looking out for!

Passivity brings back the neo prog vibe, albeit underlaid with some nifty hip-hop beats. Selling Doors follows, sounding more reminiscent of Kid A-era Radiohead, with a vibrant jazzy syncopated beat. The saxophone of guest musician Gali Spektor is as welcome and enjoyable here as it was in the title track. The instrumentation is stark and dark, and Spektor's vocals echo this, sounding almost desperate. Spektor's vocals work very well in this way throughout the album, adding tone and timbre to the songs that heightens tension, or drives them forward. It seems everything has been meticulously planned so that everything fits in its place, and nothing is there if it does not serve the purpose of the song. Whether acoustic and organic, or electronic and manufactured, the instrumentation and percussion, along with the vocals all feel entirely natural. Nothing is out of place. It all belongs. Again, and I hate to belabour the point, the only thing that doesn't feel quite right at times is the dynamics.

While I have been reminded of Ulver several times already, it is only with Docks that I really get that vibe ' and yet, the music is still so different from anything Ulver has done that I would not even be confident to suggest that Ulver might have been an influence. (To use that band as an example, they reportedly had not heard any Depeche Mode before recording their Julius Caesar album. Influences are often inferred, rather than implied.) The thing is, Roman Spektor makes so many jumps in style and sound between songs, let alone within them, that of the many bands I might be reminded of, he might be influenced by any of them, or none of them. He's managed to create a quite unique sound, that can't really be mistaken for anyone else, no matter who it might remind me of.

And saying that, the album ends reminding me once more of Chris Pitman, though not in such bombastic fashion. If Checkbox reminds me of Sextapes, then Cut the Cool Air reminds me of Lusk. It's a gorgeous final track, which ends the album leaving me wanting more. The songwriting, performance, production and mixing on the album is all by Roman Spektor, so hopefully he won't take my feelings about the dynamics of the album to heart. It really is my own criticism about the album, and it's not a big one. I gain a lot of enjoyment from listening to this debut album from Spektor, and am still listening to it a lot. Roman Spektor's bio states that with Functionality's 'unusual soundscapes, and undeniably catchy melodies, it is the perfect introduction to the adventurous artist's world.' I can't disagree, and I can't wait to hear what comes next.