Andrea de Varona (she/her) and Josh Ford (he/him), aka Fake Dad, is a Los Angeles-based, NYC-bred indie rock meets dream pop duo. Their EP ‘Holy Wholesome And The Slut Machine’ is about made-up quirky characters who live in a chaotic world in which the band members can see or express the different aspects of their own personalities and psyche. Like the process The Beatles went through while writing the songs for Sgt Pepper’s. Still, even though Fake Dad uses make-up and many theatricalities in their imagery, it is not a concept EP with a specific underlying story.
Speaking of theatricality, the vocals are very expressive, and just like the band’s sound, they are a great mix of punk, rock, and pop. The more mid-tempo tracks of the EP (‘Little Fake’, which is my favourite, and ‘ON/OFF’) are much more on the pop side, with an extra coolness and vocals slightly more mellow at times.
Even though it sounds quite straightforward, having been a music producer for years, I know very well that it takes a great deal of devotion to one’s art and a lot of practice and experimentation to deliver that kind of attitude and sass on the vocals, from Joan Jett-style bratty shouty lines to more “cannot be bothered” and more storytelling rich whispery and raspy melodies. And Andrea pulls this off beautifully.
The production is clean and straightforward, quite on the sparkly side, a bit reminiscent of some Britpop moments. The vocals are very well produced and arranged. I particularly enjoyed the harmonies/adlibs, which ranged from punky dissonant to 60s psychedelic-style mellow backing vocals.
Although it is a bit over 20 minutes in length, ‘Holy Wholesome And The Slut Machine’ is short and sweet!
Written by Spiros Maus
