Bayonne (real name Roger Sellers) already made a name for himself in his native Austin before his debut release 'Primitives'. Having been likened to his contemporaries such as Toro y Moi and Panda Bear, Bayonne has taken the backlog of his improvisational loops and transformed them into a cohesive sound that is truly unique.
Bayonne studied music theory in college before the monotony and his personal boredom ultimately led to his decision to drop out. 'Primitives' was a byproduct of that fallout as it led him to break the mould and experiment with a looper. Amassing a stockpile of different melodies, Bayonne then incorporated these into his live performances before refining them in 'Primitives'.
As a result, each track is densely layered with these loops and creates a stereoscopic soundscape of organic and electronic samples, each laced with the artist’s dream-like vocals. On tracks like 'Spectrolite' and 'Waves', these melodies seem methodical in their approach, allowing for more focused interpretations in the sparse vocals before seamlessly transitioning into the more experimental 'Marim' and 'Steps', respectively.
'Primitives' is an apt name for an album with seemingly simple craftsmanship but still waters run deep and this is very much the case for Bayonne. It’s a strong indicator of the artist’s ability to convey emotion across his minimalistic style. Each track’s repetition isn’t a result of incompetence on the musician’s part as each repetition works and demonstrates Bayonne’s ability to meticulously hone the sum of its parts to create that greater whole. Clocking in at 56 minutes, 'Primitives' doesn’t overstay its welcome by overreaching yet it shows that Bayonne has more tricks up his sleeve, which he should easily be able to demonstrate in his live shows.
8/10
Words: Jasper Pickering
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