Los Angeles-based artist Blue Mar, aka Marcelo Deiss, recently released his debut album, The March Hare, a collection of 14-tracks probing the world we live in from all angles, utilizing imaginative phrasing and touches of dark humor.
Blue Mar explains, “I wanted to make an album that addressed topics like human connections, being in perpetual upheaval, and feeling unable to unwind but in a whimsical, tongue-in-cheek manner!”
Written during the pandemic and recorded between London and São Paulo, and produced alongside Fabio Pinczowski and Mauro Motoki, the album is packed with gritty guitars and nostalgic, vintage sounds.
The album begins with “The Life of a Savage,” a short, introductory offering, featuring strident colors, followed by “Gridlock,” a potent alt-rock song rife with retro flavors and dirty guitars. The rhythm rumbles on a thick bassline and finessed yet powerful percussion.
Highlights on The March Hare include “Earthquake Pills,” which rolls out on dark, snarling guitars full of murky coloration. Blue Mar’s rasping voice imbues the lyrics with risky savors. The bluesy guitars and rounded drums give the tune a foreboding mood.
A personal favorite, “Straw Cave Man” rides growling guitars and a driving rhythm, rife with heavy blues textures. Replete with retro psychedelic tangs, the harmonics contain hints of country blues, infusing the tune with a tasty rolling motion.
“Eulogy For Rohith Vemula,” inspired by Vemula’s life and activism in India, rolls out on a low-slung ukulele topped by gentle, husky vocals. Written in his São Paulo apartment in just two days, the track is one of the quickest songs Blue Mar has ever written.
Opening on deep, reverberations, “Division Ways” travels on granular guitars atop a bouncing rhythm as Blue Mar’s vocals give the lyrics echoing timbres. When the harmonics shift, assuming a slower rhythm, the song takes on visceral textures of swirling hues.
“ONE,” a sonic exploration of setting aside difference and uniting, features Portuguese lyrics, along with English lyrics. Dirty guitars and a galvanizing mid-tempo rhythm add to the intense passion of the song.
With The March Hare, Blue Mar dishes out luscious retro flavors, tantalizing rhythms, and evocative, rasping, and melodic vocals.
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