EP review: Raffertie “Build Me Up”

by Max Jones

If you’re the type of person whose music choice is dependent upon the mood you’re in (i.e. a Songza user), then Raffertie’s latest EP will slide nicely into your pre-coffee morning routine, and start your day on the right note.

With steady and non-intrusive beats, Build Me Up is an ideal way to wake up in the morning, slowly but surely. What it lacks in decipherable lyrics, it makes up for in subtle melodies that hit your ears like pillows of sound.  Once you move away from your actual pillow, though, “Benediction” will keep your momentum going with a similar drumbeat and enough reverb on the sparse guitar to choke a donkey. I’m not entirely sure how reverb would do that, but you get the point.

Raffertie then slows it down a bit with “Trust,” which would count as the EP’s ballad if you could make out the words he is singing/echoing.  He is joined on the track by female vocalist Yadi and she is a welcome addition. Besides the relative crystal-clarity of her voice, the lament in her lyrics is palpable and tugs at your heartstrings. This song is to be used as the background to remembering what you have to do with your day. It’ll clear your head and make you think about stuff. Finally, he ends the EP with “Known,” which is easily the weakest track of the 4. Yadi is ditched in favor of more guitar; normally not a bad thing, but in this case it is just used as one of many repetitive layers of sound.

The vocals are included in those layers, as once again they are tough to make out, but by this point you’ve moved on from active listening and into your day, so in keeping with that analogy it’s the perfect song to end the EP with.

It’s little more than non-offensive background noise, and by the time it’s over you’re ready to attack the day with some more upbeat music. You should thank Raffertie, though, for helping you start, and finish, the worst part of your day: the first 20 minutes.

Release day: May 20, 2013