REVIEW: Viiola Bloom — “Break! (My Heart)” (SINGLE)
Vancouver’s Viiola Bloom reaches far beyond the norm and sears the soul and mind with the radical “Break! (My Heart)” out now. Fans of the 80s won’t need to bring out their parachute pants and Swatch watches just yet, but the temptation is damn real. Viiola Bloom land from another planet with this relentless electro pop track stacked with rhythm and tantalizing vocals. Bound and determined to have a great time? Add “Break! (My Heart)” to your playlist and leave the rest to Viiola Bloom.
“Break! (My Heart)” is nearly three songs in one. It starts out with a slow build, like a movie score setting the scene. The setting is pulsating, as if you were inside a video arcade. The atmosphere is limitless, an infinity of imagery emerges. The drum machine is fast, with quick steps and blinding chills. When Viiola Bloom, the moniker of Andrew Muller, starts to sing, he’s already created a substantial build up. His voice coils itself around the pong-like music bed like a spiral case. And you never could fit, into my fantastic schemes, you were drowning, couldn’t pull you upstream, he sings. He voice melts the listener like butter in a high wattage microwave. He’s cheeky, sneaky and so dreamy. The wavelengths flowing underneath him, releasing just enough flexibility that you can feel the energy running through your veins, continues to expand.
So take from my mind, these worthless raw ambitions, he breathes in-and-out. When Muller sings, he reminds me of the romanticism of a smoker and fixating on his hand movements in relation to his mouth. I imagine him throwing his head back, both in disgust and ecstasy. A ripple effect of chaotic radio static and then a violent stop. Then, the song starts again, with the music re-setting, as if to say this song is chasing courses and the third and final act is about to start. When “Break! (My Heart)” closes out, the party doesn’t seem to end. This killer indie song is only the start of something very big. Muller has a pain in his voice, a vulnerability that he’s sharing. But I don’t think he reveals too much about himself. I think he keeps his voice mysterious and his prose close to his heart. I think he lets the actual music bed — not the lyrics — do the most communicating to his listener. His end game is about dance, about feeling the life out a song. When you listen to a song like this, you feel taller, you feel faster, you feel euphoric.
APPLE MUSIC: https://music.apple.com/us/album/break-my-heart-single/1477382890?i=1477382896&ign-gact=3&ls=1
To call this song merely pop, rock, electronica or any genre, for that matter, is like calling Charles Dickens a guy that jotted down a few sentences. Viiola Bloom peels back several layers of artistry that if you aren’t paying attention, you won’t get. But the more you listen, the more you realize the genius unfolding. This song is overflowing with moxie. Viiola Bloom’s “Break! (My Heart)” has me crushing. Is there more? More, sir, can I have another?
Colin Jordan
