I’ve been slightly remiss in getting Album reviews done over recent weeks, but hopefully the wealth and breadth of the rest of Nordic Music Review’s output makes up for that. Whilst Lilla Parasit's new self-titled release might fall slightly between a full album and an EP at 7 tracks, I’ll happily classify it as an album, mainly because it does feel like a substantial enough release.
We have, of course, featured them before. They are a Swedish 4 piece band featuring Are from fellow Indie Band 'Melby', and both bands fit very much into the style of music that I like, slightly leftfield Indie Pop, which isn’t afraid to disappear at a musical tangent. It’s taken Lilla Parasit a while to get here, having experimented with sounds over a 3 year period, and finally settling on a line up which included band members who’ve played in numerous other indie bands such as Systraskap and Me and My Kites.
Of course, given the 24 hour a day Corona coverage, music is a lovely escapism from everyone’s stresses, so it’s kind of typical that Lilla Parasit open up their album with ‘Blasted Germs’. Now those of you who haven’t heard this band before will immediately be struck by the distinctiveness of the vocals, and they have slightly divided opinion in my household, but personally I simply like the individuality, and their almost ‘wayward’ nature seems to suit the warped indie pop style.
‘Old One, New One, Found One’ typifies the Lilla Parasit style, with a lilting melody, helped by the waltz styling which accentuates the rhythms - lyrically it’s engaging too, even if my old ears don’t quite catch all the words. ‘Russians’ is a real delight melodically, with subtle brass and wind instrumentation that sit in the background adding a different texture to the song. We reviewed ‘Feather Soul’ previously when they released it as a single, and its still a favourite now.
‘Eirik’ however, still steals the show, dark brooding guitars open with yet more appealing vocal melodies, but the highlight is the beautifully conceived instrumental section which slowly builds to a huge climax and then cuts back to vocals in an almost sublime moment that I just keep on listening to over and over. ‘Gaslights’ ends the album in a laid back style, a big catchy chorus and a deceleration to finish.
There’s just so much to like about Lilla Parasit, even accepting that the vocal styling may not be quite everyone’s preference. Because aside from the great tunes, interesting instrumental sections and it being the type of warped indie pop style that I personally like so much, the reality is that they are so distinct, instantly recognisable and so definitely doing ‘their thing’. 'Lilla Parasit' may only be a short release, but it's a real favourite of the year to date for me.
'Lilla Parasit' has been released through Stockholm family label Rama Lama Records.
You can find them on Facebook or Instagram. And there's a limited release of the vinyl you can buy on Bandcamp.