Album Review: Eli Orion's Everything You Didn't Want to Hear

Album Review Jun 9, 2024

By Logan Lamers

Apologies for an album review trope, but going into this record I had little knowledge of who Eli Orion was or what their music was about. A quick cursory search about the album led to an Instagram post in which inspirations such as hyperpop, 90’s pop rock, and EDM were listed. With that foreword, not to mention the title of the release, I could very well consider my curiosity piqued.

For the next 45 minutes I was met with a whirlwind of impressive production, self- aware narratives, and hooks that demanded festivals. Earnest vocal harmonies shared the same space as pitch-shifted vocals, and conventional drumwork gave way to tightcomputer programming. Acoustic instruments passed the baton to gliding synth drops, and then both dropped out to a field recording of bells. Plaintive piano and euphoric trills filled one track, blown-out dance beats commanded the next.

The wide array of styles fits a few modern music paradigms: we can listen to anything, anywhere, at any time; many young musicians can create a colorful world at their fingertips with current recording tech; nobody has to follow any rules. But even these wonderful aspects mean little if the artist at the helm has little to say or, even worse, is insincere.

Fortunately, Orion delivers. Everything. The hyperpop production exhilarates like a rollercoaster, but it serves its purpose as a vessel for the eclectic genre hops. The lyrics have such a youthful honesty that even an odd line about Tinder or Times New Roman feels more like cheek than cringe. The scope of the project and its execution speak to the skill that Orion has as an artist, and as long as this artist’s creative engine gets enough fuel, subsequent projects are something for which one should be excited.

The same Instagram post shares the sentiment that these are the most fun songs Eli Orion has ever made. This true, sincere, unbridled fun, leaves Everything You Didn’t Want to Hear failing to live up to its name in a way we can all very much appreciate.