Falling into alchemy: ‘Great Pretender’ by Fore Fader is an imaginative indie folk neo soul jazz rock genre fusion

Writing music reviews makes listening to music tedious many times. But every once in a while, a piece of music comes in that makes it all worth it. Great Pretender by Fore Fader is one of those albums.

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Great Pretender by LA-based duo Fore Fader is, without reservation, one of the best albums I have had the pleasure to listen to and review. Consisting of Stephanie Carlin and Carey Clayton, Fore Fader secluded themselves in the Mojave Desert and the Los Padres forest to craft this record. And the magic that these landscapes must have evoked shows in the inventive magic of the soundscapes of this record.

This album straddles indie folk, alternative rock, Neo Soul, dream pop, Jazz fusion, and R&B genres with cinematic and ambient soundscapes. All the while, they transcend boundaries of typical genre descriptors, embracing bold creativity and daring sonic artistry.

The album slowly lets you into its magical musical world. “Let The Light In” opens the album on a nice, calm, minimalistic ethereal note. A tapestry of vocal harmonies, clean guitars, and light percussion with an outro that sparkles through vocal layering and delicate strings. And the magical vocal harmonies and layering with insane soundscape remain a feature throughout the sound of the album. In a similar vein, “All I Ever” turns on the magic with stunning piano flourishes and daring chord and key changes.

The energetic sparks enter in with “Firestarter” which dances confidently in Neo Soul Jazz and R&B fusion territory, which reminded me of Hiatus Kaiyote, with the song transforming into a fusion rock space towards the outro. “Pendulum” stands apart as a masterwork, its R&B-tinge and acoustic guitar intro shifting into a cinematic, operatic rock climax. There are some insane sounds in here, and the amazing guitar solo is only one of the magnificent pieces of sound in here. “Holy” has an insane intro buildup with evocative magical production. The insane jazzy chord changes and vocal production in here are mad. The album picks for me in here are Firestarter, the title track, Pundulum, and Chrysalis.

Fore Fader crafts a very vivid sonic journey, heavily layered and evocative. The sound is at times hypnotic and always immersive. It puts you into a trance-like state. The production is many times production is weightless and airy, with shimmering textures, with lush, sensual, sultry vocal delivery. The lyrical themes on this album are rooted in a journey towards authenticity, healing, and finding meaning through cycles of loss, hope, and acceptance. Nature and spirituality are threaded in throughout.

The root of the magic here is the insane vocal layering. Space and reverb, and delays which are the root of what makes music sound magical. It is controlled the way magicians control magic, or the artist paints an insane scenery or abstract work of art. The sound and daring magical songwriting of this album is a chef’s kiss! This album reminds me of and is kind of like a mix of Florence + The Machine and Esperanza Spalding. So, do not miss this album, Fore Fader has crafted a masterpiece.