San Francisco – “And now, it’s show time.”
So begins the full-length commercial debut from Skylar Spence, Prom King: an eleven-track nu-disco opus from 22-year-old wunderkind Ryan DeRobertis. Some may remember DeRobertis from his days as a producer of “vaporwave” music (a genre of electronica that relies heavily on samples that have been drastically slowed-down) under his former moniker of Saint Pepsi. DeRobertis has since had to abandon that alias (due to legal action from a certain soft drink giant), but with his new name comes a new era of music from the producer-turned-singer, and the finished product is a bold step in a very exciting direction.
Skylar Spence’s sound is somewhat of a departure from that of Saint Pepsi and his 2013 LP Hit Vibes, as DeRobertis has shifted his focus from trippy, dilapidated samples and fuzzy instrumentation to lyric-driven, disco-fueled dance pop. The first track “Intro” dives right into the fray, with blasting digital orchestration that is like that first burst of hot air one feels when entering a dance hall; it’s instantaneous and startling, but altogether inviting. It gives way to meandering streams of sampled strings, funk-laden guitar, and a vortex of distorted vocal samples and percussion. The whispers of Saint Pepsi are still heard, though rather faintly amidst the joyous cacophony of Skylar Spence. Actually, the closest Prom King comes to DeRobertis’ earlier material is the mellower late-album instrumental track “All I Want,” which finds its footing in slow, churning beats, subtly adorned with chime-like synths and dusty, incomprehensible vocals that have been stretched and warped to sound almost like melodic cartoon sex noises.
This album is mostly enthralling due to its lyrical content, which blurs the lines between the charmingly arrogant and playfully bittersweet, yet the strongest element that comes across is the pristine, accomplished nature of its instrumental production. Each song sounds squeaky clean and polished, whether it’s the wordless boisterousness of “Bounce is Back” (which is basically a modern take on Studio 54-era disco), “Ridiculous!” and “Cash Wednesday” or the more vocal tracks that dominate the LP. An easy favorite is the final track “Fiona Coyne,” which was released as a single last summer, and sees DeRobertis as a shameless wooer, dropping the façade of the love-weary suitor in exchange for the persona of someone who doesn’t care about feeling crappy about liking someone. His voice is confident and strong as he repeats ‘I’ll love you till the record stops!’ The whole time he is backed by a wall of sound that can only be described as euphoric, mixing horns, Nile Rodgers-inspired guitar riffs, and twinkly synths that seem to mimic the enigmatic thrust of hormones one experiences when they are around someone they really, really like. The song bursts at the seams, each note echoing the exhilaration that is exhaled with every syllable of Skylar Spence’s jubilant lyrics.
The first half of Prom King acts as a mirror of its ultimate conclusion, especially evident in the album’s second track “Can’t You See.” This is one of those songs that sees our narrator second-guessing himself and his prior entanglements—both artistic and personal—but the chorus is hard to ignore when he ecstatically admits, ‘I’m in love with my own reflection!’ It’s pure, jovial, and totally self-aware of its juvenility, and perfectly imitates the attitude of an actual prom king: he’s insecure, but at the same time, he knows he’s the shit. When it comes to succeeding in the world of art—especially when one is producing it at such a young age—it’s hard not to feel apprehensive, but once everything starts to fall into place, you feel like royalty.
Title track “Prom King” conjures more murmuring ghosts of DeRobertis’ Saint Pepsi days with carefully arranged blooms of bent vocals that bookend each verse, increasing in intensity and complexity as the song progresses, acting as an indecipherable chorus that could easily be mistaken for a Daft Punk track. The following track, “I Can’t Be Your Superman,” features the most interesting instrumentation on the record, beginning with a few measures of guitar riffs that don’t seem too out of the ordinary, but they quickly evolve into a more punctuated fervor—even hinting at a little bit of an homage to INXS at times—just as a swirling tide of synthesized ripples of electronic attack take hold. DeRobertis’ vocals take center stage here too, offering heartfelt support while also honestly examining his own shortcomings as he repeats the song’s title in protest—perhaps in response to his subject, perhaps in response to his own feelings of inadequacy. Either way, the track is brilliantly executed, juxtaposing infectious dance beats with the chaotic nature of youthful thought.
Prom King takes a more tender turn with some later songs on the album, such as “Affairs.” “Affairs” deals with more melancholy subject matter, as evident in lyrics like, ‘He’s holding on with the grip of the titan/When she has made up her mind.’ DeRobertis skillfully subverts the lyrics in this song with deep, affected vocal repetition, yet despite its up-tempo qualities the bittersweet melody is what stays with us, plunging the listener into a place of understated sadness. This is Skylar Spence’s answer to the ballad: he stays true to the optimistic nature of his medium while still tugging at our heartstrings. However, on the other track that mimics this sort of dance-pop sonnet, “Fall Harder” (originally the B-side to “Fiona Coyne” when it was released as a single last summer), we find the narrator in a state of pining, rather than regretting. It’s unclear as to his relationship with his subject, but the message is altogether gentler and more hopeful: ‘But it chills me to the bone/That she might be the sweetest thing I’ve ever known/And I’d rather be with her than be alone.’ Regardless, the ‘80s-influenced percussion and bright guitar hooks draw us to a place where everything seems peachy, even though it may not be below the surface. It draws us into the sense of curiosity that yearns for the possibility of happiness, and that’s something that is all too easy to relate to.
It’s hard to say if Prom King would have ever existed if Ryan DeRobertis was ever forced to change his name from Saint Pepsi to Skylar Spence (Skylar Spence, funnily enough, is the name of one of the tracks off Saint Pepsi’s Hit Vibes). When “Fiona Coyne” was released as a single last summer he was still operating as Saint Pepsi, though it didn’t quite fit in with the persona he had built under that moniker. The change in style is obvious, and so maybe it was serendipity that brought about this new phase in his artistic career. Either way, Prom King is a triumph. It elegantly illustrates a portrait of a man—albeit a very young man—in a state of transition, whether it be from producer to vocalist, boy to man, artist to visionary…it’s hard to pinpoint exactly which; maybe it’s all three. This collection of music is truly complete, it’s sleek, and it’s catchy as hell. Ryan DeRobertis has marvelously captured the image of inquisitive youth with these eleven tracks, and it’s something to be celebrated. At the end of the day, he’s got my vote.
Skylar Spence ’s Prom King is now available through Carpark Records. He is currently on tour supporting the album, with stops throughout North America (including San Francisco’s Treasure Island Music Festival) through November. For more information visit his Facebook page.
Corey Bell
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