"it's so magical to feel good now..."
Walk slowly into the bedroom pop dream world of "Magical" by Orlando, Florida based (via Chicago) psych project The Looniest Toon and you might feel like a kid, that special child inside before your naivety about the world was scrubbed away with steel wool. God, I sound so bitter but this beautiful song has softened me because as brief as "Magical" is, it feels like an introduction to a G-rated movie (PG on the outside) full of whimsy and hope and maybe it is, a sonic movie in the form of a four track EP called "Tripp Avenue" that, as press notes reveal, is "inspired by the Tin Pan Alley era and the music of Frank Churchill and Sammy Fain".
When I first heard "Magical" weeks ago with it's vintage pristine keys and 50's teen dream quality I was not sure how to take it. I have said hundreds of times (over the 14 years I have shared music on AP) that for me, songs are sonic Rorschach tests and each one of us feel, hear songs differently based on our own lives, data we have collected since birth good and bad. "Magical" to me rides a tight rope, it could feel sardonic, it could be a social commentary on other eras white picket fence existence and the skeletons that hide inside closets or maybe not.
It could also be an escapist dream about how life should be and how we, really imperfect humans, ought to treat one another. The Looniest Toon is the brain child of singer-songwriter Bex Gaspelin and I found the seeds of this project so interesting, again from press notes, (bracketed):
[Born on Tripp Avenue Chicago, IL, Walt Disney and Chicagoland equally influenced the work giving it its fitting title. Just like Disney’s early ideas Gaspelin intended to create “her own colorful world” within her compositions to symbolize dissociation, a coping mechanism used much within her childhood. She also touches on other mental health subjects in the album such as depression, analysis paralysis, and anxiety. Tripp Avenue will be released in 2024.]
I find Gaspelin's vocal countenance dreamy and aesthetically a unique cross-generational mix of cartoon whimsy, art pop/punk, twee, musical theater and, in some ways, a little baroque as well. I look forward to dipping into The Looniest Toon's past work and upcoming EP.
Credits on "Magical":
Bass Mixing / Mastering Yen-Yaw Studios: Brandon Kyle Miller
Drums: Christian Moreno
Vocals / Keys / Electronics: Bex Gaspelin
-Robb Donker Curtius
Hello: Anyone enjoying this read and American Pancake, end of year is always a more difficult time in terms of finances. If you can help out by contributing to our Go Fund Me below it would be super appreciated. Cheers Robb
THE FACTS AS WE KNOW THEM
https://soundcloud.com/thelooniesttoon
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCHaeLZag0ROEen23URAhTGw
https://thelooniesttoon.bandcamp.com/track/who-i-am
https://www.instagram.com/thelooniesttoon_/
https://twitter.com/TheLooniestToon
The Looniest Toon is a psychedelic dream pop indie project from Orlando, FL / Chicago, Il.
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