The pearl, seashell and track titles (which include “Nymph,” “Whalesong” and “Return to the Sea”) are strong indicators of a summer album; but what one can’t tell from the eyes alone is that ONDA is also a dance album. Drum & Lace seems liberated by the sand and sea, ready to share a set that dives head first into joy. Sofia degli Alessandri-Hultquist has always been attracted to rhythm, but this is her most club-minded release to date.
ONDA is also the balance to Frost, which focused on winter and colder sounds. The importance of the seasons is evident in the release date (June 21) and the title of the opening track, “Solstice.” One can imagine the pilgrimage to the sea, the revelers soaking in the sunrise. As the drums recede, the gulls arise, joined by mourning doves and dogs in “Plus,” one of two collaborations with Patrick Shiroishi. Drum & Lace calls this song “a shedding of the skin.” The waves lap in the breakdown, inviting listeners to shed their shoes as well, in preparation for the next track, “A Piedi Nudi” (“Bare Feet”). One can hear the waves attempting to retrieve stones from the wrack line, an impression that continues into “Nymph;” the pieces are beautifully integrated, and onda is the Italian word for wave.
“Conchiglie” (“Shells”) continues to increase the excitement: the tempo is as swift and steady as the stroke of a competitive swimmer, and the sound of the sea remains close. In contrast, “Whalesong (feat. Violeta Vicci & Ian Hultquist)” begins in a pensive manner, adorned with strings, closer to the “classic” Drum & Lace sound, if such a thing can be said of such a young composer. As exciting as the sea may be, it can’t be all eexcitement; the tides and waves, eddies and pools invite reflection. But on this album, it’s hard to subdue the pulse; just when one has been lulled into a reverie, the whales begin to dance.
The artist also references The Birth of Venus (born fully formed) and the power of the feminine, also associated with the sea. When a siren call surfaces in “Sisters,” it is not to draw men to their death, but to communicate with other sirens on other rocks. But the album’s biggest surprise is “Huntington,” whose drumbeat references Massive Attack’s “Teardrop” and whose vibe recalls the classic trip-hop era. The sea is also about memory, each visit recalling all the visits before, the sea glass one may have thrown in the water as a child returning when one is an adult. In like manner, “Richiamo del Mare” (“Return to the Sea”) is an invitation on the summer solstice to visit the shore, to remember that once the entire earth was covered with water and that this same sea still flows through our veins. (Richard Allen)
a closer listen 