Unlike Pluto's EDM 2.0 reinvention has been one of my favorites to behold. The former future bass darling jumped ship on the saccharine synthy genre, diving headfirst into a rich vocally-driven emo/EDM hybrid.
It was a bold choice, and one that proved ultimately successful for Armond Arabshahi, the man behind the Unlike Pluto moniker. Arabshahi and I are around the same age and both hail from the Atlanta area, which makes me wonder if perhaps we frequented the same emo shows back in the gap. Either way, Unlike Pluto is drawing rich inspiration from the indie rock canon on his yearning new double-single "Late Bloomer," premiering right here with EARMILK.
"Late Bloomer" opens proudly with the invigorating line "the world was new," coupled with a grumbling, buzzy bassline and Unlike Pluto's beckoning vocals, layered multiple times over themselves, creating a one man chorus of sorts. When he croons "we lost track of the nights, we slept away the days and hoped we'd never age," I felt that. As we course further and further away from our teenage years, those fearless memories become all the more poignant to behold. "I Tried Getting High" continues the introspective mood, the words "I just wanna feel alive" piercing over tumbling piano and a steady downtempo beat. Unlike Pluto tells EARMILK, ‘“Late Bloomer’ and ‘I Tried Getting High’ are two songs about growing up and trying new things (legal things & illegal things). All those experiences made me who I am today.” Methinks I've found a kindred spirit.
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