OneNamedPeter – Pan | Eclectic Avant Pop

The newest artpop album Pan by OneNamedPeter, a.k.a. Peter Bennett, has been made available. Peter has had a sizable career, having had five albums released since 2020 in addition to a number of singles. His unique style of indiepop and lo-fi music is strongly influenced by the inventive popular British music culture. He has drawn influence from unconventional classic rock and pop artists including Bob Dylan, David Bowie, Kate Bush, and Joni Mitchell. Peter draws linguistic tact and precision of expression from all these creative talents, which grabs your attention.

The first track Heart Of Stone begins with synths that build up and create anticipation. The song makes use of a variety of string and electronic synths and they sound beautiful. Blue Boy is a slow ballad that is based around some solid piano accompaniment. OneNamedPeter makes generous use of vocal effects to give that ethereal electronic vocal production. This is a slow melancholic ballad with apt additions to the cello. Scorched Earth employs some great production ideas which are well applied. Especially the very inventive playing around with chordal structures and vocal layering in the middle of the song is incredibly creative. The muted guitar string which is the background to this is also very prominent and pleasing to hear. The mix of piano, strings, eclectic electronic production, muted percussive guitars, make this an album highlight.

From electronica we move to more organic sounds with acoustic and prominent bass lines with Let It Rain. We hear the amounts of percussion and strings here as well. Never Never includes a nice blend of electric guitars, keys, piano, and synths to give an eclectic mix of a pop rock song. The Lost Boys is an avant grade trip of multiple dimensions. Adding tablas and diverse production elements makes this song a treat. Alchemy makes apt us of multiple synths and samples to give an eclectic experience. With its right use of electronic piano riffs and licks, Wings paints itself as a pop rock song with electronic elements and quite creative music production. The record ends with the phenomenal Under Your Skin.

OneNamedPeter exhibits a strong songwriting talent and production creativity, similar to his idols. An ideal homage to music experimentation tradition is created by the music’s succinct and unambiguous expression. Peter has done some intense electronic experimentation in the stream of avant grade pop and rock. Tonal variety and diverse song structure, non conventional chord change and harmony backdrops are what you will hear on this record.

Now to constructive criticism. The album could do a better job in the mixing and mastering department as it lacks that sharp professional finesse. More variety in vocal delivery would also be better to match the inventive variety in terms of production. Rhythm wise also there is the scope for diverse drums and beats throughout the song in a more cohesive narrative flow. That being said, OneNamedPeter continues pushing the envelopes of experimentation and expression with his music.