ALBUM REVIEW: Melody’s Echo Chamber Returns for a Great Departure on ‘Bon Voyage’

Another fantastic collaboration between Melody and a modern psych great.

A full 6 years since her self-titled debut, Melody’s Echo Chamber return with Bon Voyage; a weirder, wilder take on the sexy space-age psych of her earlier work.

Melody Prochet first album bore the strong scent of Tame Impala’s Kevin Parker, who drenched her….uh, melodies in hazy reverb, trippy effects and…uh, echo. Clever name, right? After some health difficulties and trouble writing a follow up with Parker, Prochet relocated from France to Sweden, linking up with members of the psych rock group Dungen. Together, they took a maximalist approach towards her chanteusey psych.

Breathy vocals in French, English and Swedish, egg chair funk, bossa nova, middle-eastern strings, dance beats, mellotron, auto-tune and some out-of-nowhere screaming that prompted my 5-year-old daughter to laugh and say “ha, this part is funny.” The best tracks of ‘Bon Voyage’ (“Cross My Heart”, “Desert Horse,” “Visions of Someone Special”) have the sophisticated, joyful pop experimentation of greats like Os Mutantes, Serge Gainsbourg, Broadcast and Stereolab.

Their everything-and-the-kitchen-sink approach is held together by the masterful guitar work and writing of Dungen’s Gustav Ejstes, who in my opinion is a modern day Hendrix, and more enjoyable to listen to. Both Tame Impala and Dungen have remarkably distinctive drum tones that I love, and these are in full effect on both of Melody’s albums.

Bon Voyage is another fantastic collaboration between Melody and a modern psych great, and hopefully there is more to come in less than 6 years.

Score: 🔉🔉🔉🔉/5