The Daily Spin II

Fenech-Soler | ZILLA

Welcome back to the Daily Spin. For the uninitiated, this is the series in which I review an album every day of 2025.

As was the case two years ago, my favorite song from each album can be found at the playlist linked here.

Album: ZILLA (2017)

Artist: Fenech-Soler

Link:

Fenech-Soler took a look at the type of music Chromeo were putting out - heavily funk-tinged electronica with dashes of indie flair and a tendency towards the bombastic - removed the worst part, the awkwardly cringy “I’m a lover in a creepy way, girl” lyrics, and instead added genuinely solid odes to love and feelings that touch on the best of what electronic vocals can be - not some addled faux-pensive rant about how socially deep a bass drop is, nor some addled fantasy of wooing anything that moves, but something with more finesse - a gentler touch.

Following their downsizing from a foursome to a two-piece act prior to the release of this record, it seemed like the duo - brothers - were hoping to find something to reinvigorate the band. While I can’t say for sure that anything really restored their place in the limelight with permanence, I think this is a lasting-impact sort of album that will always have a place among the late-teen greats of their time. Among their contemporaries, this is one of the finest - at its best when it doesn’t try so very hard to be everything, instead letting the moment come and exalting within it.

Rating: 9/10

Best Tracks: Cold Light, Conversation

Worst Tracks: Zilla I