Prince Rama - Trust Now (EP)
There are many approaches one can take when attempting to digest the fifth studio release from Brooklyn duo Prince Rama. You could lament at how the band haven’t progressed from the flashes of brilliance that appeared on their breakthrough record Shadow Temple, you could wax lyrical with ironic sentiments about patchouli, acid trips and experimental psych that hasn’t lived up to expectations of the critics and you could make a few inane references to witch craft, the true nature of the witch house genre and the wild results that abound when it’s mixed with video game sound effects and Sanskrit chants. Alternatively you could simply concentrate on how the music makes you feel and how much or little you enjoy it.
It’s endlessly frustrating to read (and occasionally write) reviews where the author spends the bulk of their word limit comparing an artist’s new release to their pre-existing body of work, choosing to focus on the similarities and differences as a means of measuring the worth of their latest creations. Quite frankly as all art is subjective and meaning is inferred by personal intertextuality the listening experience is different for each individual making reviews in general irrelevant. As I sit here feeling like a hypocritical fool for even attempting to marry a group of coherent sentences that may be able to adequately express what this music means to me, I have Trust Now blasting from my stereo and am instantly soothed by the intoxicating vocal work of the Larson sisters on their latest EP.
Yes, Prince Rama spent their formative years on a Hare Krishna commune on the outskirts of Florida, yes they have songs entitled “Portalling” and “Summer Of Love” and yes they will most likely enjoy wearing flowers in their hair and feeling at one with the universe as they chant, but none of this detracts from the honest beauty of their music which is no more or less valuable then their earlier releases. Prince Rama’s sonic creations will take you out of your comfort zone as they attempt to open portals to another plane of existence, combining their vast myriad of influences into a whirling miasma of noise.
They play with a darker sound on opener “Rest In Peace” as sinister elements are intertwined amidst the unfolding melodies that combine trance, Sanskrit and pop to great effect. Their vocals are wild and unhinged playing on the primal instincts that lay buried deep within the essence of human nature. The arrangements follow no clear logic and meander into unknown territory, which is particularly prevelant on “Portalling” and “Golden Silence”, screaming of oppression, frustration and discontent.
Whatever your perspective Prince Rama make highly enjoyable music that isn’t marred by their lack of authenticity, but moreso the fantastical nature of their own project which hasn’t bowed to the expectations of the public, but instead reaches for a different level of consciousness altogether and fortunately for the listener - occasionally it does achieve this.
