31 Dec 2024
Marshmellow - Album Review: Secrets of the Universe
04 Jun 2020 // A review by Callum Wagstaff
From a world of bottomless resilience and optimism comes Marshmellow's Secrets of the Universe. A Eurovision wet dream forged in environmental hope
and poverty-stricken despair with a solid gold, true-love center. Secrets of the Universe looks to nature for inspiration and uses it to create allegories for the themes of fateful love, lost love, rediscovered love, and plural, magnanimous
love for all human kind.
Marshmellow is the clever nom de plume of Marshal Smith.
MD of The Sound Room and chairperson of the Screen Composers Guild of New Zealand, Smith knows his stuff and has a large handful of accolades supporting his songwriting, composing and producing abilities. You might have already heard 2019's The Feels, which shares Secrets of the Universe's infectious pop sensibilities. Where the former leans into production to deliver said Feels, Secrets of the Universe draws from big band instruments and an area of modern pop you may equate with artists like Robbie Williams or Mika.
Marshmellow uses animals and natural phenomena to give a tangible visual component to more abstract concepts. Three Birds sets a scene that might feel familiar to anyone that's ever looked out of their kitchen window while doing the dishes, but it's a gentle affirmation about finding a path through the loss of a special person.
In Faded Blue T-Shirt he coos the lyric "love is like a river that we're fools to follow" and touches on pre-emptive grief and inequity in songs like Here Comes the Flood and Dogs of Brazil. The strong sense of imagery makes the deeper themes approachable, familiar and identifiable on an experiential level.
Marshmellow has a unique knack for finding a hook in anything from platitudes to metaphysics. Sassy atheistic sentiments become instant earworms in Secret You Secret Me as "thank the non-existent God, or anything you like" gets paired with funky guitars and infectious sax support.
Standout track Dogs of Brazil gets contagious chorus support in the margins of lines like "We could be swimming in the Atlantic/ but the dogs of Brazil run through the night". Frequency of Love wins the prize for most persistent hook, enriching morning showers and haunting sleepless nights.
One of the most admirable qualities of Secrets of the Universe is in the arc of unbridled positivity in the first half of the album moving into the 'darkest hour' of the second half.
Songs like Out There and Death Could Take Years test Marshmellow's optimism and it proves genuinely resilient rather than blissfully ignorant. By the time Here Comes the Flood (possibly the most sombre song) carries out the end of the album, there's a feeling that we've been equipped to deal with its existential grief by the journey we've been on through the preceding tracks.
After a week of listening to it, I have a whole slew of sing-along moments with Secrets of the Universe. It's a bundle of fun to play when you know how to join in with the lyrics. It's also an album that has an emotional arc, so worth hearing in order of track listing several times before you start picking out your favourites.
As a fan of finding the most gut-wrenchingly pessimistic music I can, it's really refreshing to hear a great album of optimistic music that doesn't rely on being light to achieve it. I enjoyed the hell out of feeling good-sad with Secrets of the Universe.
From a world of bottomless resilience and optimism comes Marshmellow's Secrets of the Universe. A Eurovision wet dream forged in environmental hope
and poverty-stricken despair with a solid gold, true-love center. Secrets of the Universe looks to nature for inspiration and uses it to create allegories for the themes of fateful love, lost love, rediscovered love, and plural, magnanimous
love for all human kind.Marshmellow is the clever nom de plume of Marshal Smith.
MD of The Sound Room and chairperson of the Screen Composers Guild of New Zealand, Smith knows his stuff and has a large handful of accolades supporting his songwriting, composing and producing abilities. You might have already heard 2019's The Feels, which shares Secrets of the Universe's infectious pop sensibilities. Where the former leans into production to deliver said Feels, Secrets of the Universe draws from big band instruments and an area of modern pop you may equate with artists like Robbie Williams or Mika.
Marshmellow uses animals and natural phenomena to give a tangible visual component to more abstract concepts. Three Birds sets a scene that might feel familiar to anyone that's ever looked out of their kitchen window while doing the dishes, but it's a gentle affirmation about finding a path through the loss of a special person.
In Faded Blue T-Shirt he coos the lyric "love is like a river that we're fools to follow" and touches on pre-emptive grief and inequity in songs like Here Comes the Flood and Dogs of Brazil. The strong sense of imagery makes the deeper themes approachable, familiar and identifiable on an experiential level.
Marshmellow has a unique knack for finding a hook in anything from platitudes to metaphysics. Sassy atheistic sentiments become instant earworms in Secret You Secret Me as "thank the non-existent God, or anything you like" gets paired with funky guitars and infectious sax support.
Standout track Dogs of Brazil gets contagious chorus support in the margins of lines like "We could be swimming in the Atlantic/ but the dogs of Brazil run through the night". Frequency of Love wins the prize for most persistent hook, enriching morning showers and haunting sleepless nights.
One of the most admirable qualities of Secrets of the Universe is in the arc of unbridled positivity in the first half of the album moving into the 'darkest hour' of the second half.
Songs like Out There and Death Could Take Years test Marshmellow's optimism and it proves genuinely resilient rather than blissfully ignorant. By the time Here Comes the Flood (possibly the most sombre song) carries out the end of the album, there's a feeling that we've been equipped to deal with its existential grief by the journey we've been on through the preceding tracks.
After a week of listening to it, I have a whole slew of sing-along moments with Secrets of the Universe. It's a bundle of fun to play when you know how to join in with the lyrics. It's also an album that has an emotional arc, so worth hearing in order of track listing several times before you start picking out your favourites.
As a fan of finding the most gut-wrenchingly pessimistic music I can, it's really refreshing to hear a great album of optimistic music that doesn't rely on being light to achieve it. I enjoyed the hell out of feeling good-sad with Secrets of the Universe.
Rating:
( 5 / 5 )
About Marshmellow
A well established New Zealand based songwriter, composer and producer, Marshall has written music for major international movies, documentaries and commercials for many years such as: Morgan Freeman, ABC, ESPN, BBC, BSkyB, Discovery, TVNZ, TV3, SBS, MTV, Fox... He has more than 1000 tracks published all around the world. He has been an APRA Silver Scroll Finalist and the recipient of many other awards for his music over the years.
Whilst living in the UK for 6 years he played live in venues all over England and has also toured in China and played extensively in NZ with his band The New Freedom.
Visit the muzic.net.nz Profile for Marshmellow
Releases
Other Reviews By Callum Wagstaff
SD-2100 - Album Review: Not Bred to Feel the Fat
29 Oct 2024 // by Callum Wagstaff
Sam Densem, better known as SD-2100 (a brand of metal detector but that's not what he's named after), is aggressively prolific. By the time this review is published he's already released two more EP's and a compilation.
Read More...
Saurian - EP Review: Bled Dry
09 Sep 2024 // by Callum Wagstaff
From Dunedin, New Zealand comes Saurian, a four-piece hard rock band with a new EP called Bled Dry which came out Friday the 13th of September. The 5 song EP includes the band's latest 3 singles, Devil Among Men, Down at the Crown, and Park Bench.
Read More...
Moider Mother - Album Review: Miracle Healing Crusade
28 Apr 2024 // by Callum Wagstaff
"Take a pinch of Raincoats, add a tablespoon of early Swans, sauté in the first Stooges album and add half a brick. Put it in a sock.
Read More...
Swamp Rat Collective - EP Review: Flash Sneakers
16 Apr 2024 // by Callum Wagstaff
The Swamp Rat Collective is a dirty, matted tangle of influences from the guitar music of the era between the late 80's and early 2000's. The project is a collaboration between Paul Cowsill (rhythm and bass guitar) and Adam Gatt (lead guitar) that crosses the ocean, comprising parties from Auckland, New Zealand as well as London, UK.
Read More...
Daniel Ashcroft - Album Review: Chica De La Bum
05 Feb 2024 // by Callum Wagstaff
Daniel Ashcroft is a multi-instrumentalist, producer and composer based in Feilding.His musical goals are simple: He wants to play every instrument he possibly can, explore every genre and collaborate with as many singers as possible.
Read More...
Dub Asylum - EP Review: Time & Space EP
19 Nov 2023 // by Callum Wagstaff
Dub Asylum is the musical alias for Peter McLennan, former member of 90's reggae-thrash-punk-ska mutants the Hallelujah Picassos. Now working solo, Peter McLennan's Dub Asylum is a musical mash-up of dub reggae, hip-hop and funk.
Read More...
Bad Jelly Collective - EP Review: WESTBOUND&DOWN
10 Oct 2023 // by Callum Wagstaff
Bad Jelly Collective is the brainchild of 'Bad Jelly' Ben. Tucked away in his Huia road Home Studio in the Waitakere Ranges, Ben weaves his psychedelic soundscapes together with the creative forces of his team of musical mates.
Read More...
Album Review: Cautionary Tales
16 Aug 2023 // by Callum Wagstaff
Cautionary Tales is an alt-rock band based in Aotearoa, via Berlin and New York. It's an art-rock outfit built around the type of myths and legends where somebody gets screwed over for riding a scorpion or not tipping an old lady.
Read More...
Most Viewed Artists
Latest Galleries
NZ Top 10 Singles
- APT.
ROSÉ And Bruno Mars - DIE WITH A SMILE
Lady Gaga And Bruno Mars - BIRDS OF A FEATHER
Billie Eilish - TASTE
Sabrina Carpenter - I LOVE YOU, I'M SORRY
Gracie Abrams - ESPRESSO
Sabrina Carpenter - SAILOR SONG
Gigi Perez - LOSE CONTROL
Teddy Swims - A BAR SONG (TIPSY)
Shaboozey - GOOD LUCK, BABE!
Chappell Roan
More Content on muzic.net.nz
Google Site Search
Custom Search
100% New Zealand Music
All content on this website is copyright to muzic.net.nz and other respective rights holders. Redistribution of any material presented here without permission is prohibited.
Report A Problem
