The epitome of lo-fi, osi‘s “FICKLE” was the first of the bedroom-pop artist’s three EPs to date. Coming out in rapid succession over the course of two months this summer, “FICKLE” was closely followed by two two-song EPs, but its five grainy tracks remain my favorites of her discography.
If anything had the ability to be simultaneously grainy and dreamy, it’s this EP. The base of constant static, coming from the literal “bedroom” pop aspect, opens several tracks and osi’s vocals are soft and faded. Each of five tracks is distinct, from the vintage sounds in “IMPULSE” to a rise in intensity in “VITAMINS”. Gorgeous harmonies, sometimes simply octaves apart, give an indie quality to the imperfect verses. Nothing is polished, but that’s exactly the beauty of it.
The EP comes to a close with “WRECK”, my personal favorite. It’s far too short and ends on a somewhat sudden note, but is overall subdued throughout. Lyrics, all too relatable, make my heart ache with their dusky purple tint.
I don’t often recommend digging through the depths of Bandcamp tags, but on the “bedroom pop” page, I stumbled upon osi – and it was definitely worth it. Nearing the end of a weirdly difficult week, this is exactly what I needed; wonderfully gritty and smooth indie-bedroom-pop, I will be keeping tabs on osi for sure.
Originally published on Indientry on September 7, 2017.
