React & Review: mxmtoon - liminal space
now's the time... to listen to this album!
I think it’s safe to say that I’m a fan of mxmtoon’s work. dawn and dusk carried me through the pandemic, and I’ve listened to the masquerade after discovering her music. If I’m honest, I’m not the hugest fan of rising, but I’m hoping liminal space brings that back around.
Admittedly, I don’t listen to her music all the time, nor is it in heavy rotation. But when it does come on, it’s almost never a skip. ok on your own is an absolute bop. So is sesasonal depression, asking for a friend, and used to you.
But enough yapping, here’s my initial reaction and review of mxmtoon’s liminal space.
dramatic escape
First things first: I love the plucked, layered guitar. I’m almost wondering if one of the layers is a bass guitar that stripped all of its low-end. The soft piano is a nice touch. So are the various percussive sounds in the second verse.
I think it’s a great introduction to the album. If there’s any foreshadowing going on, I’d say this is very much a more laid back, folk sound. That’s in stark contrast to rising, which is very much an upbeat album.
i hate texas
I’m not ever three minutes into the track and I can already tell its going to have a heavy country influence. The banjo, the sharp hi-hats, and the shakers. That’s all you need to know.
Unsurprisingly, the track is country-pop. This isn’t a Post Malone moment. She’s not going full country, at least, I don’t think so.
What stands out the most to me in this track is the dry vocals, even with layered vocals. They remain pinpoint centered, while everything else has a little bit of reverb or echo and is panned way out into the mix. That includes the layered vocal. Super cool production choice.
rain
Immediately, I’m intrigued. It’s giving a very country-esk vibe and I’m only nine seconds in. Again with the layered guitar, panned left and right respectively. Followed by a plucked guitar coming down the center.
I love the reverb choice for her vocals. She does it a lot where there’s the reverb is very fast. It makes her voice sound wider without having the trailing effect a lot of vocalists use in their productions.
Likewise, I find it super interesting that her backing vocals aren’t panned out. They are ever so slightly wider than her main vocals, but not by much. At first, I thought it was a mono backing track that was centered. But that’s not the case—at least to my ears.
Based off of the first three tracks, this is easily my favorite track. There’s obviously a lot more to go, but I’ve become to attached to this track almost right away.
elevator
Intimate, that’s all I could think about for the first 10 seconds. Her vocals are lush and close to the listener. I love the soft bass that appears in the first chorus.
Overall, the track sounds vulnerable. She has her signature acoustic guitar and vocals. There’s not much else, but that’s not a bad thing. Her vocal layering for the final chorus is fantastic, too. Again, simple, but effective.
It might be an ongoing theme for the album, but thus far I think that’s the best way to describe it. Her music isn’t overly complex but still remains interesting to listen to.
just a little
Of course, I can’t get enough of the plucked guitar. It sounds like this one is slightly panned to the left. By slight, I mean it’s very minimal. I wasn’t sure at first, but it’s notable once her vocals come in.
The chorus is heavenly. The layering is perfect with the soft bass, synth, and, of course, the acoustic guitar.
I love the production on this track. She chose to have a huge final chorus and a proper outro. Not unheard of, but certainly rare in pop music. A lot of songs just repeat the chorus a few times at the end.
VHS
Right off the rip, this track is much more pop than everything I’ve heard thus far. This reminds me of the mxmtoon I knew from the past. Yet, it fits in with the album. It’s pop, but still has softer sound that this album is clearly trying to convey.
Of course, being a millennial, I get the VHS reference. It’s an old technology that I remember from my youth. I can hear the tape sample in the background, especially near the end of the track. It unlocked a memory for me, that’s for sure.
Wait... are we getting a transition into the next song? That’ll be a first.
number one boy
YES! We did. I’m proud of her. I think this is the first time she’s done a transition from one track to the next. I wasn’t expecting it at all, but I clearly heard it coming. I absolutely love that.
Spacious. That’s what I’ll say. This track is spacious. It’s once again, fairly simplistic in its composure but it doesn’t need much else. I love that her vocals have a ton of space on this track.
It might be weird to say, but this is the first track where I’m bopping my head to. The rhythm is electrifying.
passenger side
I sense a change of pace in the album. Are we getting more pop for the second of the album?
This track is very happy. I love the blacks in the second verse. Very subtle and it’s split between both the left and right channel. Nice touch. I’m loving the shaker here, too. It seems there’s one shaker stem that was doubled and split between both channels, giving it a stereo effect.
Again with a proper outro. Chef’s kiss.
the situation (featuring Kero Kero Bonito)
It shouldn’t be too surprising, but I have no idea who Kero Kero Bonito is. Looking at the track list, this is the only feature on the album.
This track seems to have a more alternative vibe. I’m into it. It’s giving early 2000s emo/punk and I’m here for it.
From what I’ve gathered from a quick search, it appears Kero Kero Bonito played the instrumentation on this track, and mxmtoon took the lead vocals. It’s a cool collaboration nonetheless. I wasn’t quite sure who they were before, but this makes a lot of sense. I mostly heard mxmtoon’s voice for the main vocals.
Very, very, cool collaboration.
god?
As is usually the case with most artists, the track order is very intentional. Especially if you listen to the album top to bottom, there’s a distinct genre shift. It’s a lost art, really. As a lot of people tend to listen to music via playlists or with full library shuffles.
I love the sass in her voice on this track. She has an almost, but not quite sarcastic tone. Likewise, her vocals on this song are very passionate. That is very obvious.
I don’t have much else to add. It’s a song that explores her spiritual journey. Everyone’s journey is different and it’s not always a smooth road.
now’s not the time
I’m about to start sobbing. Damn it. This track is so beautiful. It’s tugging on my heartstrings. We were doing so well!
I definitely understand the track, lyrically. It’s about growing up too fast and feeling lonely as everyone around you doesn’t recognize you anymore. It’s different for everyone, of course. But it’s a tale as old as time. It’s tragic.
That being said, I really love the production on this track. It’s actually pretty aggressive for a ballad. Certainly one of those tracks that are lyrically the saddest thing you’ve ever heard, but musically a lot less sad.
white out
It’s the final track. Hopefully, we can end this one strong!
I guess we’re ending the album with two extremely sad songs. This one talks about self sabotage and having to figure everything out on your own. Again, that feeling of loneliness despite having a support channel around you.
Musically, I think the end of the track leaves a lot to be desired. In my personal opinion, she’s leaving the door open for a potential deluxe version of the album. It sounds like the track was about to transition into the next, but there is no next. At least, not right now.
I’ll come back to this one if there ever is a deluxe version released. I’d be curious if the track does bleed into the first deluxe song.
Conclusion
I have mixed feelings about this album. I didn’t completely vibe with most of the tracks, but none of them were "bad", either. Far from it. It’s something I’ve had to come to terms with the longer I do this.
There are going to be albums, even from artists and bands I’ve loved in the past, that just don’t land for me. This is one of them. I loved the country vibe early on, and the transition into pop, and the eventually the last two tracks being ballad really hit home.
It’s an album that I can see myself playing every once in a while. It’s also an album I could see myself removing tracks as time goes on, and really focusing in on the few tracks I absolutely loved.
NOTE: This album reaction was written after listening to mxmtoon’s “liminal space” on Tidal with an active Tidal subscription and the Tidal desktop application (24-bit, 96kHz, stereo mix).