41. Single Review of Obregia by Alexe
Originally published September 12th, 2024
About the Artist
Nearly midway through my third month after starting Fifteen Minutes of Fame, I have found that it is more than just an exercise in changing the critical norms that fast-paced social media have established. Developing an analytical spectrum for how you interpret music allows you to appreciate every song more. I’ve also found that it gives me more desire to branch out and find music that I wouldn’t normally listen to. I’ve always been into alternative, folk, Americana, and softer styles of music. Now, I’ve not only developed an appreciation for Metal, Hard Rock, Dark Wave, and Gothic music, I’ve developed a fondness for it.
So, I was very excited about my next challenge of getting to know the artist, Alexe and the hardcore music he produced. Alexe is a young performer from Romania. His music is a significant blend of metal and trap beats.
About the Song
Obregia is a metal record that released on August 29th, 2024. It has a runtime of about 2 minutes 15 seconds. It features electric and bass guitars, metallic synthetic noises and programmed beats for percussion. Additionally, Alexe provides layered vocals that are performed in a sort of spoken word performance, similar to rap metal.
About the music
Musically, the electric guitars primarily provide a continuous riff with differing layered distortion effects. The bass guitar vamps on a monotonous tone. As there is just one chord in the song. The bass provides a very consistent low end to fill the sound of the song. The percussion is also a consistent performance; not experimenting too much with transitions. The music is provided as an accompaniment to the vocal performance, which is a harsher spoken word providing impressive rhythmic interpretation and an adrenaline-inducing energy to the intensity of the song.
About the Lyrics
I’m going to let everybody in on a secret that you might not know about me: being from Nashville, Tennessee, in the USA, I can confess that I don’t speak Romanian. In fact, I don’t have much exposure to the language at all. I honestly had no chance of being able to interpret these lyrics on my own. So, I reached out to Alexe himself for assistance.
So, Obregia is a reference to At Obregia, a Neurology and Psychiary hospital. The chorus reads, “At Obregia the synapse, neuron, death, scythe, My mother is the florist, we are zen like in Pucioasa.” After speaking with Alexe, I know “My mother is the florist” is a reference to a Romanian folk song and “Pucioasa” is a social media influencer with a zen-like demeanor. So, it opens with a reference to chaos and mental disorder, but then says that chaos is their zen.
Alexe goes on, “Sapiosexual what? Omelet du fromage. You cocky beatle, you’re sleeping in the trunk. Are you saying that what I’m saying doesn’t make sense?” Leading into the verse, I feel there is a sort of disorder to the narrative. “Run away from me while you can. Run fast like in a rally. I have to intervene; I don’t speak cattle language. Swallow a Pizdocalmin.” Here, it seems the narrator is giving a warning to this extreme and volatile nature. I also received guidance from Alexe on the definition of a Pizdocalmin. It is apparently a fictional pill, meant to tell a woman to calm down.
In the second verse, the narrator says, “The fence is not stopping me. I see the mosh pit in front of me. I’m not blinking. I’m getting into it. I feel like head banging. And then I start to growl.” It seems as though he is referencing this as his outlet for his bottled rage.
The entire song feels angry and it feels violent. Perhaps an anger towards society, conformity, or monotony. I can understand this anger. This type of stance can be taken on the polarizing differences we have as humans. In debates like politics, science, religion, and more. Our narrator seems to be embracing this rage rather than bottling it. He is saying it is ok to do this.
The lyrics are random and sort of nonsensical, by design. Therefore, it is easy to suggest I may be way off on this. But that is how I read it, and it’s important to remember you might interpret the song differently and that’s ok. Because you’re supposed to.
Final Thoughts
In the last few weeks, I’ve been exposed to some very interesting music that is relative to this style. I got a definite System of a Down vibe from Alexe, as well as some electronic sounds that, once again, remind me of Nine Inch Nails(can you tell I like NIN?). It’s a long walk from the folk music I listen to, and I am appreciative of that.
Alexe has shown me there are ways to safely express some extreme feelings through music. To flip it, emotions are a pivotal gateway to exploring different avenues of music.
The music, lyrics, and production quality of this song are very unique. But it is all done very well. It is structured in a way that resonates with like-minded people. It almost feels like a movement before a song. A culture before a verse. A passion before a melody. And it doesn’t get more authentic than that.
Comments
Post a Comment