EDEN continues to push the envelope on with his incredibly alternative single, “About Time,” but suffers from its amorphousness and nebulousness. 

22-year old alternative/electronic musician EDEN (Jonathon Ng) released his first full-length album, vertigo, in January 2018. Vertigo marked a personal LP that balanced acoustic and electronic backdrops, and featured expressive, emotional vocals from Ng. It’s an imperfect effort but has its moments and shows the potential of the Dubliner.  Six months later, Ng released two new singles, “About Time” and “Stutter.”

Expectedly, “About Time” retains the moody vibes that appealed on Vertigo.  Fueled by electric guitar, the rhythmic instrument helps to form a big, dynamic wall of sound.  Eden initially approaches “About Time” in spoken word, chanting rhythmically, before finding his signature expressive, pitched vocals.  His sung vocals are harmonized, adding to the depth of the sound.  Essentially, the effect is amorphous and nebulous – there’s nothing standard per se.  That said, his repetition of the lyrics “slow down” forms a bridge of sorts, even if one feels that labels aren’t particularly appropriate for this record.  It exemplifies alternativeness.

Final Thoughts 

What does one make of “About Time?” That’s a good question.  This seems representative of the artist that EDEN has presented himself to be as of yet, but it does feel as if he leaves the listener out on an island.  There is a great build-up after he serves up the spoken word in an undertone, but it’s quite difficult to ‘get into.’ The ideas are creative, but the nonstandard song structure/form and lack of something concrete to latch onto makes it an ambitious record to follow.  Interesting, but polarizing overall.

EDEN • About Time – Single • Astralwerks • Release: 6.29.18

Photo Credits: Astralwerks