FEATURED ARTIST *Chic Chameleon* Doomed EP REVIEW

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Chic Chameleon - Doomed

Edmonton, Canada

Credit - Eline Callens

Patrick Froese is a multi-instrumentalist and producer who lives and works in Edmonton, Alberta. His background, growing up on a farm on the Alberta prairies, gives his music a distinct sense of vastness and self reliance that rings true to his experiences living in an isolated part of Canada. He graduated from a music degree with distinction, majoring in composition, and went to work creating his project Chic Chameleon. Accurate to Indie, Shoegaze, and Dream Pop, Patrick uses lush reverbs, repeating delays, and thick choruses to achieve a melancholy aesthetic. Behind his commanding melodies, he utilizes layered guitar lines and luxuriant synthesizers to create immersive pads that you can almost float away in.

Chic Chameleon has performed at many venues in Edmonton including The Station on Jasper, The Buckingham, The Avairy and Polar Park Brewing CO. Chic Chameleon’s first official single release, ‘Dreaming of Heaven’ will also being featured in a movie produced by the GIFT (Girls in Film and TV) organization, also based in Edmonton. To top it all off, Chic Chameleon’s debut EP comprised of four songs came out on March 25, 2022 and is available on all streaming services.

'Doomed' is a four track EP that was sent over to us to review so let's get our teeth into it then! Opening with 'Samtree' the EP comes in with the ultimate dreampop vibe in its production. A melodic, dreamy guitar composition sells this EP to us through the use of its whammy bar. When combined with synths this whole reverb filled beauty takes you away into a world of pure reflective hypnosis. Track 2 titled 'Dreaming of Heaven' keeps the same vocal style but changes the melodies and mix of the instruments. A more acoustic vibe is found in the opening of this track through the guitar playing but we're also given almost a church organ sound in its VST synths. I like this twist, it's diversifies the project dramatically. This song has more of a surfers feel to it. 'Noble Lies' gets us in a reflective state through an emotive guitar riff that is full of reverb and sadness. I really like music like this! It almost has the feel of RnB trapsoul to it. Accompanied by the slow picking of guitar strings and a mellow drum percussion we're really taken into another world. Smooth and wide vocals fill the piece beautifully. The mixing of the song and the production elements give this song a real Khalid style which conjures up a similar feel to his music. The introduction of bell synths give the mix an extra level of space and it is just the perfect sound. This is a track that incorporates indie vocals with the smoothness of darker RnB and I'm so here for that sound! Track 4 is titled 'Doomed', a track that has a slow burning opening. Once the vocals join the dreampop instrumentalisation I found myself 'Dreaming of Heaven' for sure. The repetitiveness of this track is entrancing through the cleverly mixed guitar and drum loop. This is a dreamy pop track that smacks of Khalid meets Harry Style. I really love this artist! As the track progresses I began to make the link between Chic Chameleon and Coldplay's 'Sky Full Of Stars'. If you could imagine what it would be like for Khalid, Harry Styles and Coldplay to collaborate on a track then you've pretty much conjured up Chic Chameleon.

STREAM HERE

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