TRCK REVIEW: IV of Spades - In My Prison
“Left Ear” IV of Spades was the focal point of the music scene for the first half of 2018 with a monumental change being made in the group dynamic. Unique Salonga, their vocalist, announced his departure at the apex of the group’s hype. With both entities enveloped in the monophonic noise of news, it was natural for mutual silence to follow suit. And in that silence, stereo was born.
The graphic teasers released by IV of Spades were akin to pins dropping in a chamber void of sound. Displaying nothing but colors and parallel lines, all the cryptic signs coalesced revealing a surprise drop of their newest track, “In My Prison”. Released exactly as the clock struck midnight, the song features a noticeable shift in their sound and tone. Gone are the escapist evocations made by the funk sound of yesteryear that was appropriated by their old singles, the new song displays the interplay of the trio’s technical skill in synth-pop. The songwriting however, leaves much to be desired.
Repetition legitimizes, there's no denying this fact. But the content being repeated and the emotions being displayed in this track is lackluster, a hollow song masked by a glittery synth-pop sound. Distancing the chorus from its repetitive nature, the verses reveal itself to be edgy but unfocused one-liners. Lyrical mood building is an important aspect of songwriting, as long as it doesn’t sacrifice the overall coherence of the piece. Statements like “save me, somebody wants to take me” and “kill me, so I have a reason to live” have little connection to each other other than mood, and they’re found in the song to be sequential. The verses appear to serve merely as a substandard vehicle used only to arrive to the chorus. The chorus itself also features sub-par lyricism: “I’m in the middle of the night” does not explain why contradicting statements like “I won’t forget it on my mind” and “I can’t remember” are stitched together.
Structurally, the song relies heavily on the repetition of musical motifs. The chorus is melodically catchy, and they milk that chorus for all it’s appeal by shortcutting the verses. Excusing the failures of the song from a lyrical standpoint leaves behind the rest of the song: a tired retreading of synth-pop fused with live instrumentation. With that, there is little sense of progression to be found.
Whatever passages that try to change the tone come off as jarring, taking the listener out of the flow of the song. This is made evident in two instances: the first bar of the chorus and the guitar solo. The first bar of the guitar solo features an ascending synth line and tom-heavy drums, a good idea placed poorly due to it undercutting the return of the “momentum” found in the rest of the chorus. “Momentum” is put in quotes since virtually the same energy is found in the verses, only emphasized due to the aforementioned first bar. Barely effective, but it could have been written better if the band took notes on how EDM buildups are structured. Blaster’s guitar solo is also marred with the same problem: the four on the floor beat is a good buildup cut too short with the insertion of his guitar solo. The guitar solo, however, is perfect in length and composition. As for the vocals, it was a passable performance, perfect for the mood of the track.
The few positives can’t completely mask the disjointed structure and lyricism, so at least the track has a repetitive chorus to make it tolerable. Further listens had only served to highlight the problems listed here, so it’s best to turn off the mind while listening.
With the band trading in one retro aesthetic for another, “In My Prison” firmly marks IV of Spades as a pop band, nothing more. Feel free to enjoy mindlessly while staring at the cute band members, but don’t try to look further lest you be disappointed. For there are two shallow pools here: one is of calm waters making no illusion of depth…