MorMor Grapples With Alienation in the Incandescent 'Some Place Else' EP
Photo: Micaiah Carter
There is a familiar warmth to MorMor's poignant sonic meditations. Calling to mind the revered soundscapes of '90s shoegaze and ultramodern iridescent R&B, the Toronto artist's radical approach to pop is nothing short of gripping. And it is amongst these bewitching soundscapes that MorMor, the artist and human, grapples with feelings of profound alienation.
Some Place Else arrives as the follow-up to MorMor's critically-acclaimed debut EP, Heaven's Only Wishful, and in many ways feels like the Toronto artist's best work to date. "Another day like yesterday/ Where it all just slips away/ A change of scene, a change of pace/ I'm waiting on some better days," are the first words we are met with on the EP's title and opening track, welcoming us into the world of MorMor and the swirling thoughts pervading his mind. The Toronto artist pairs these intense feelings of detachment from the world around him with an incandescent soundscape that embraces you like a fuzzy blanket, slight static shocks and all.
Much of Some Place Else unfolds in similar fashion, as MorMor faces his feelings of isolation atop meticulously put-together sonic backdrops that advance like a half-remembered dream. For MorMor is an artist not mired by his emotions, left to wallow in a never-ending winter. In his phenomenal sophomore effort, he finds the comfort and eventual self-realization that accompany facing these moments of profound introspection head-on. MorMor spoke on the underlying inspiration behind Some Place Else, sharing,
“I wrote these songs during a time where I couldn’t shake my demons. I was forced to confront what I had been masking in smiles and metaphors. It was a long winter.”
MorMor is an undeniable master of his craft, so much so that it may be easy to miss the melancholy and emotional growth hidden amongst the artist's ever-impressive production and instrumentation. Yet, in using his distinctive gift for transfixing musicality as a catalyst to examine the inner confines of his soul, MorMor emerges out the other side not only wiser, but as pop's new auteur.
Listen to Some Place Else below:
