Svenny Baby’s Voyager | Album art by Niya Nikarov
By Juan R Govea
I spoke with Svenny Baby about a year ago for a previous En La Calle article. The piece was an overview of the band and their previous releases. I knew this band had something interesting and different about them, as I found it difficult to compare them to anything.
When I spoke with Victor Toruno (keys/vocals), Dustin “Dutty” Johnson (guitar/vocals), Felipe Rosales (drums) and Jonathan Holder (bass/vocals), the group was setting out to bring a more theatrical element to their music, as well their live performances.
The new release Voyager came out November 3 and has received positive attention from Fort Worth Weekly, Funkytown Podcast and Arlington’s UTA Student Publication The Shorthorn.
The well-versed musicians of Svenny Baby have absolutely deserved the attention that their hard work has garnered them. Since 2015 they have released one full-length record per year: Painting Pictures (2015), Cool For a Moment (2016) and The Wastelands (2017). The release of Voyager keeps this pace alive!
The latest release caters to those with experimental synth/pop rock funk inclinations, but is very much indie rock. Voyager takes the listener through a heart-felt, emotional journey described through lyrical storytelling of overcoming distress, the feeling of remorse and adoration of magical beauty.
The album is sincere. The lyrics are theatrically dramatic. Toruno’s vocals hit the mark yet again, and the group’s instrumental choreography is often punctuated by Rosales’s resounding emotional cymbal crash. Johnson’s fierce guitar strums give the album a hard rock characteristic, especially on “Untangle”. Holder’s bass brings the funk to both Voyager and Svenny Baby.
This album is very fun and original. If you find yourself stuck in a rut, Svenny Baby will pull you out of it with a funky, joyous, healing relief. Voyager is very much a rainy day album that brings out the sunshine with on cue electronic effects.
I was very happy after having listened to this album. Svenny Baby has accomplished what they had set out to do a year ago. The theatrical element that the group planned to imbue their music with is in full effect with tracks Case A, Case B and Case C. The three tracks are unique spoken word tracks taking different conversational situations that overcome the trials of young adulthood in the real world with a subtle reminder of kinship and overcoming daily worries on this album’s voyage, if you will, of life’s trials.
Kudos to Svenny Baby for making something unique for local fans to enjoy. There are several different elements to this album that feel like the awakening of the dawn of a new day:
“Cosmos” sums up a general idea of what Voyager is made of. The song ventures into the unknown stratosphere, and takes the listener along for the ride. “Deeper” focuses on the idea of traveling through astronomical elements of reality while stargazing in wonderment of what lies ahead. The lyrics in “Up To You” overcome tribulation. “Where The Two of Us Can Meet” deals with the romantics of heartfelt found love.
Bandcamp Link: https://svennybabymusic.bandcamp.com/
