Alma Elste “Virtualism”

16 Jul 2013 — Henry Schiller

I could probably lose weeks of sleep worrying about what Lana Del Ray has opened the door to, and I think Alma Elste’s debut track “Virtualism” may be the first real taste I’ve gotten. I am pleasantly surprised. Combining the dumbest lyrics ever with an electronica reconciliation of Enya into Nobuo Uematsu, “Virtualism” becomes a weird effort in self-identification: though very sure of its own clever potency, “Virtualism” seems to have no idea as to what may be producing the effect.

It seems clear to me that while Elste has a gift for composition and melody, her vocals are (perhaps forgivably) stuck in a radio-ready quagmire. Del Ray-esque lines like 'drinking 40s, playing GTA' ring in a little too clear, and aurally neglected is the song’s bridge – an operatic howl that pulls you into a nocturnal world so believable you might actually be able to ignore the abject silliness of the whole thing. It’s a definite spark of what Alma Elste could be capable of if she were to focus on the compositional aspects of her music.