Author: Aleš Podbrežnik
Artist: Zebra Dots
Label: Universal Music Group
Release: 2012
Runtime: 45:07
Rating: 3/5
The Slovenian-Croatian outfit Zebra Dot looks like a fresh story of early musical success, or so it seems, considering that Universal Music Records spotted them and signed the up-and-coming musicians to put out their studio debut »Walking On A Chance«. Of course, we’ll only be able to talk about success in the full sense of the word where Zebra Dot are concerned in a few years. So let’s see what the debut actually has to offer.
The sextet has taken a form that picks up the occasionally retro-nostalgic character of eighties new wave synth pop, with a fair dose of the synth sound of early Duran Duran on one side (Elephant Strong, Don’t Try), and greased it with a mostly danceable rhythmic mattress that often, in its trivial form, swerves into funk, thanks to the dynamic engraving of an active bass line. That’s how Don’t Give Me The flows nicely too, with a clear Jamiroquai vibe. Pressure, meanwhile, gets rescued in a similar manner by its pre-chorus and chorus, since the verse offers absolutely no dynamics or tangible substance. Give A Little retreats into dub territory (verse), and the danger of the song going watery energy-wise is successfully broken up by a well-crafted chorus backed by horn section arrangements. The band grabs onto similar impulses in Teaser, but with somewhat less conviction. In Crystal, a dynamic retro funk disco rhythm takes the lead again, and it works a treat with the female vocal, while the male vocal accompaniment “soaked” in a talk box effect is always pleasant enough.
Honestly, nothing new in today’s music world. And yet. The vocal combination of a female-male duo knocks out, right up front, any chance of pinning a plagiarism label on Zebra Dot. The male vocal in particular is the tipping point on the scales, its delivery steering the band’s expression away from possible parallels that would hint at a lack of originality and “leeching” off the tried-and-tested musical forms of older bands.
The album loses steam in the second half, mostly because the accompanying arrangements fail to shake up the overly centered male vocal, which makes the one-dimensional vocal color (often run through effects) stand out. That’s how Teaser, Pressure and One Desire come across (the closing motif of the latter is painfully witless in its solutions). Luckily, the album’s finale is arranged much like its opening, and the tracks Party & Romance and Mr. Revenue bring »Walking On A Chance« safely home.
It’s a solid debut that shows the band is already delivering enough tangible musical substance right out of the gate, which is a prerequisite for an album to stay interesting over its running time. Still, they absolutely need to sharpen their musical direction going forward. The band is simply better served by arrangements cut in a retro new wave pop sentiment rooted in punk foundations than by flirting with dub, while they could add even more funk contours to the danceable simplicity of the rhythms. There’s still plenty of room for the bass lines, and with a bit more oomph in that department Zebra Dot would also gain some sonic warmth, since the sound of »Walking On A Chance« is mostly cold. Synthetic makeup of effects simply takes precedence over organic feel, which isn’t necessarily bad, but in that case the instrumental backing badly needs a remedy in the form of richer arrangements (additional sound effects, programmed loops, guitar phrases, etc…), something Zebra Dot still have to learn. So there’s plenty of potential left. Let’s give it time.
Lineup
Koolade – vocals, “talk box”, synthesizers, percussion
Saša Aleksandra Danilova – vocals, backing vocals
Erik Marenče – keyboards, piano, synthesizers, organ, percussion
Andraž Mazi – guitar, “lap steel”
Jernej Kržič – bass guitar
Ivo Rimić – drums, percussion
GUEST MUSICIANS:
Bojan Zupančič – alto saxophone on tracks 5, 6, 8 and 10
Tomaž Gajšt – trumpet on tracks 5, 6, 8 and 10
Vid Žgajner – trombone on tracks 5, 6, 8 and 10
James Freeman – backing vocals on track 2
Production
Koolade
Track list
1. Elephant Strong
2. Don’t Try
3. Walking On A Chance
4. Outta My Mind
5. Give A Little
6. Don’t Give Me The
7. Crystal
8. Teaser
9. Pressure
10. One Desire
11. Party & Romance
12. Mr. Revenue
13. Clock Alarm
