Blue Diamond by HM333XO is literally an Electronic music album with a Pop music aesthetic. Imagine if The Weeknd created an entire album produced by Daft Punk, Oneohtrix Point Never, and electronic music duo Justice, and allowed each of them to do whatever they wanted musically, that is exactly what "Blue Diamond" is as an album. From the Hyperpop and Bubblegum Bass atmosphere of the opening track "Blue Diamond Theme" which only has an actual drum beat towards the end of the first verse, to the almost Industrial drum machine beat of the following track "Driving In The Snow" which sounds like an Electro Pop song being created in real-time! Blue Diamond is an album for the Hyperpop fans of Charli XCX, just as much as it is an album for the Synthwave fans of Kavinsky.
"Sky Surfing" is one of my favorite tracks with it's pure Synthwave melody and HM333XO heavy reverb vocals. "Sky Surfing" is a perfect mix of pure euphoria, chill vibes and late night atmosphere all wrapped up into one song. Track 4, "Flight to London", was originally titled "FKA twigs" on the Bandcamp digital release, but is now listed as "Flight to London" on streaming services. The song references FKA twigs song "Oh My Love" as HM333XO sings the line "I was whippin in a GT playin' your mixtape / Oh my love that's my song I knew it by the 5th play". Flight to London is also the only song on the album that features a quirky uk club dance rhythm that only seems to work because of HM333XO singing on it, but seems like if you were to remove the vocals, you'd be confused as to how to actually move to the beat.
"I Love Cocaine" is HM333XO at his BEST! The pure Electro melody, harsh synths and aggressive kick drum all come together to make a dark anthem about being addicted to cocaine and the damaging affects it has on your state of mind. "I Love Cocaine" is a dark Electro Pop banger, and it doesn't even have a snare drum!
The album closes out with "The Boy Who Jumped Off The Roof", which is a legit Electronic Indie Pop song with it's it's Bedroom Pop style production, light atmosphere, sound fx, and HM333XO singing what seems to be live while walking down the street. The song abruptly ends with the sound of someone jumping off of a building and smashing into a car.
Blue Diamond is truly an album for both Electronic music fans and Pop music fans alike, and it showcases HM333XO and his ability to produce high quality Electronic music and write great Pop songs at the same time. It's a concept album, but the songs wouldn't feel that out of place if played individually without any context, and that's what makes it such a great album.
such a fire EP!!! i hope he keeps going in this electronic/pop direction because electronic music needs a new sound like this besides all the dance stuff going on these days.
don't get me wrong, i like dance music, but electronic music is so much more than just club stuff and this album proves how cool electronic music can be when done right!
great project. excited to hear more!
