Album Review: Cacophony // Paris Paloma

Paris Paloma’s Cacophony is a treasure chest of contradiction. The 23-year-old artist’s generally delicate song-writing, mismatched music and lyrics, and contrasting imagery flawlessly translate the intensity of emotional turmoil into music. Though only a debut, she cements her maturity as a singer-songwriter and emerges from this album as the hero of her own mythology.

The majority, as I did, might find the collection of songs in an album titled Cacophony surprising.  Many of the tracks are quiet, contemplative pieces.  Paloma’s most musically cacophonous number, ‘my mind (now)’, opens the album with an almost mechanical churning of the phrase “what did I do wrong?”. As the harmonies begin to flourish, the verse shatters into a concoction of untampered brass, leering electronic guitar, and hushed screams. ‘my mind (now)’ is disorienting, cathartic, and crucial to understanding the rest of the album. In the track’s outro, Paloma admits “my mind has not been silent since you”,  suggesting that we are about to listen to a more cerebral than musical cacophony.

Paloma is unafraid to show off her skills as a lyricist for her next two tracks, ‘pleaser’ and ‘his land’, and plunges into a pool of natural imagery. With a softly thundering drum beat and a vocal breathiness that sounds like a gently crashing wave, ‘pleaser’ is a sirenic song that blurs the boundaries between nature and woman, as Paloma invites the ocean into conversation: “dearest ocean // do you get upset when // the cliffs don’t come out to meet ya?”. Whereas the flickering piano in ‘his land’, along with nature and fire imagery, convey an emotional power struggle. Though the meanings behind these tracks are more ambiguous than others, we can see the foundations of Paloma’s earthy lyricism begin to bloom.

‘drywall’ is the album’s triumph. The folksy, whimsical nature of its melody highlights Paloma’s denial at the aggression of her lover as “he is punching walls again”. The bridge is a volcanic chant, bursting with brass, heavy guitar, and the yelling of young women. It erupts into an ecstatic melody, as she has decided to “sever ties” with her partner. ‘Drywall’ is an emotional melting pot  that ends with a celebration of self-assurance- a must-listen.

The middle of the debut moves from the personal to the societal, throwing us into Paloma’s most masterful hold of her imagery. ‘labour’ won hearts on TikTok with its primaeval, chanting sound and its skilled intertwining of modern and ancient imagery to emphasise the well-ingrained, ancillary position of women in society. Meanwhile, ‘as good a reason’ conjures a witchy tale presenting female self-confidence as the poison to the patriarchy.  The fairytale charm of the lady with “lips of red// a face so lined like spiderwebs” makes the spite of this anthem even more addictive.

The music becomes more gentle and uplifting as we progress to the end of the record. Paloma returns to her natural imagery to highlight the calm after the emotional storm. A particular favourite being ‘bones on the beach’, where Paloma speaks of her desire, not for love, but for peace:  “all I want is some rest, there’s no sentience in death.”

The album ends with the gentle pluck of a guitar. The soft and reflective ‘yeti’ is a beautiful song accompanied by the whispering vocals of indie artist, Old Sea Brigade. It discusses the resolve of a relationship, where Paloma and her lover have found their separate paths and hold each other now in “sweet indifference”. “we are nothing but myths now // that neither of us believe in”. The album has concluded, the mythology has ended, and Paloma’s emotional cacophony has been silenced.

Paloma’s debut demonstrates unimaginable skill, though some may comment on the repetitive nature of the album. It is true that the album doesn’t explore a variety of themes and may overuse the “us and them” narrative, resulting in a potential lack of nuance. Yet cacophonies are not balanced. Emotion is at the heart of this album and fixations on painful memories and injustices can cause silent cacophonies in our heads. Paloma’s fantastical lyricism is half her charm, but her ability to capture the reality of human emotion makes her one of the most insightful songwriters of this generation.

Words by Harriet MacDonald

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