Malibu: Vanities

"Vanities, the debut full-length by French producer Barbara Braccini, aka Malibu, is equal parts devotion and alienation. Her short, lush ambient compositions layer formless washes of synth with field recordings of city sounds; seamy and ominous, they evoke haunted industrial areas or images of abandoned business districts during Covid. At the same time, the songs on highlight Braccini's clarion, wordless vocals-hymnlike passages that attempt to thaw the production's frosty veneer."

"From the sirens that drift through the thickly atmospheric opener "Nu" to the new-age wash of "The Hills" to the voice that whispers, "It's our secret, you can't tell anybody," like a sample from some '90s thriller, on closer "Watching People Die," Vanities revels in the chilly contradictions of the City of Angels-its pervasive warmth and the way its layout forces a sense of atomization, the vague spirituality and the potent sense of moneyed privilege."

Vanities is equal parts devotion and alienation, featuring short, lush ambient compositions that layer formless synth washes with field recordings of city sounds. The tracks evoke haunted industrial areas and abandoned business districts during Covid while highlighting Braccini's clarion, wordless vocal passages that attempt to thaw the production's frosty veneer. The record was made largely in Stockholm and finished in Los Angeles, and it channels California noir through drifting sirens, new-age washes, and whispered samples. The mix is crisper and more expansive than Palaces of Pity, with vocals placed higher and individual samples like crashing waves more distinct.

Read at Pitchfork