Orion was released the 14th of June, it is the second album of the pop-rock group X Ambassadors and after canceling the album this last April 2019 because ¨the material wasn't as personal and it fell like more of a show off in terms of genre experimentation¨ a couple months later ¨Orion¨ finally was released.
The first single released was ¨Boom¨ which has a more ¨funky¨ upbeat character in comparison to their past hits such as ¨Unsteady¨ or ¨Jungle¨. Starting with a smooth base riff and their characteristic percussion hits as the voice enters saying ¨My feet go boom boom boom¨, the single really demonstrates a more ¨pop¨ side of the band without loosing their main essence which was very refreshing to hear.
In ¨Hey Child¨ which was the second single released from the album, we can really hear a clear evolution in the music. Filled with percussion elements and just the right tempo fluctuations, it attacks the chorus with a very lyrical use of the voice and it accomplishes their goal which was ¨to deliver something that feels honest and real to the fans¨.
We can hear a more acoustic and simple side of the album with songs such as ¨History¨ with use of a guitar and a couple of strings, but the voice brings that same energy we are used to with X Ambassadors.
¨I don´t know how to pray¨ is another example of an acoustic style but with a different twist on it, starting with a keyboard and a very expressive vocal style which is then abruptly interrupted just as the phrase ¨And god said¨ was being sang.
The lead singer explains it cuts right there because sometimes in life there are no answers to the questions we ask and ¨life unfolds how it unfolds¨.
The album represented exactly what they wanted in the beginning, which was to keep their essence intact and to keep portraying the image they adopted since the beginning, but it also shows a transition in their music experimenting with different elements and playing with integrating different genres into their existing one.
Listen to the full album on Spotify:
