Doubt In My Heart
Freaksville, 2020
8/10
This 4th album under his own name has the always creative Belgian Benjamin Schoos bringing in many guests to help flesh out the warm synth-pop of these 9 originals.
“Traces Of Our Thoughts”, with Marker Starling, who makes 3 appearances here, starts the listen soulful and pop friendly with a mix of piano amid elegant strings, and “Shoes” follows with Nicholas Krgovich’s breathy, expressive vocals guiding the dreamy ‘70s setting.
Elsewhere, “All Night Every Night” benefits greatly from Dent May’s contributions in the sunny, soulful pop landscape, while “Melody Souvenir” relies heavily on keys as Alex Gavaghan provides much melody in the retro atmosphere.
Near the end, the percussively strong “Power To Amaze” moves closer to psychedelic territory as Robert Sotelo helps cultivate a very cozy delivery, and “I’m Disappearing (Syd)” exits with ambient, psyche-rock where Schoos provides excellent drumming.
Sung entirely in English, Schoos has crafted a universal pop album here, that’s both glorious and introspective, and often points towards the past while still maintaining a very modern playfulness.
Travels well with: Josy & Pony- Eponyme; Camilla Sparksss- Brutal Remix