Album review: Opus, Eric Prydz
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his second studio album by Eric Prydz is an interesting one. Going into it, I would not have thought that I would enjoy an electronic album, but Opus has managed to keep me interested, despite its lack of lyrics that are so prevalent in other forms of music, especially my favourites: hip hop and rap.
Nonetheless, an album has been crafted here that is worth a listen although, for reasons I will get into, it may not be for everyone. One key problem that I do have with the album though is that the songs all have a very similar flow or feeling to them. Let’s take an example… The album’s title track, Opus, starts off with a slow beat and, over the course of the first four or so minutes, the speed starts to increase, eventually reaching a full blown rave beat by the halfway point, which is at about the four minute mark. Which brings me to my next point: these songs are not short! Most of the 19 songs on this two-hour long album are more than 6 minutes long, so aren’t what you would call ‘radio friendly’, which will inevitably turn some people off. Moving onto another song, such as Generate, and you start to recognize a similar formula: the song starts off with a slow beat, which gets increasingly faster as you go on through the song. Now, if you don’t have a problem with music that sounds very similar and repetitive, and if you are a fan of electronic music, you will be able to appreciate what Eric Prydz has done here. The sounds that have been made are very appealing, and are reminiscent of 80’s party music. However, if you are looking for something more varied or, like me, you begin to despair at the lack of lyrics, then Opus may not be for you. But for anyone who doesn’t mind the similarities between the songs, you will enjoy your time with this record.
By Haidar Ali
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