Alex Izenberg - Harlequin

Alex Izenberg
Harlequin
2016
Spotify

Harlequin is the debut release from Los Angeles based singer songwriter Alex Izenberg. When you hear the term singer songwriter the first thing that springs to mind is someone sitting on a stool plucking away at an acoustic guitar while spinning some tale about love or loss. The market is so flooded with these types from College dorm rooms to Arena's filled with screaming fans that making an impact really takes some doing. Alex Izenberg seems to be doing all the right things to set himself apart from the rest of the pack. Following the same path as Sufjan Stevens Izenberg uses big yet delicate sounds. Instrumentation that kids songs might use, yet upgraded to a very adult level. Instead of the songs only focusing on love, though some do, Izenberg really brings in some interesting thought experiments and ideas that we do not often hear. It is quite fascinating because the vibe of the album is so grounded in the past, yet the lyrics are so up to date. Mentioning how a girl doesn't like his Instagram posts is one of the lines that really stands out. The production is really stripped down, but it works for the kinds of sounds Izenberg tries to create and he is able to mine a whole lot more from songs that could in all honesty just be little ditties in the wrong hands.

There are times when Alex Izenberg gets to bogged down in his own swirling Americana sound and any semblance of melody almost flies out the window. "Changes" springs to mind, where each new instrument that comes in is just slightly off, leaving you with this very eerie feeling even though the songs notes could be used in a lame 80s commercial. The stand up piano is a real star on Harlequin and is used almost throughout. It adds this lightness to almost every track and sort of brings up memories of Wild West Salon's filled with Rye and loose women. "A Bird Came Down" however shatters this vibe and comes in with some odd other worldly flowing tune that is clearly meant to put you off balance and shake up the record. The album wraps up on more of a whimper than a scream, but you really can tell that all the bones are there for Alex Izenberg. Because He is so wholly himself rest assured his sophmore release will just be more of him, much more.

7.1 out of 10