Diandra Reviews It All

I have had the pleasure of interviewing Khodara and now I have the continued pleasure of reviewing her upcoming EP, Billie. Mixed by longtime friend and collaborator, Billy Pavone, Billie is a four track modern take of classic pop. Moreover, it is one more step in Khodara’s continuous journey as a pop songstress mixing a vintage vibe with a Millennial soul.

Imagine entering your “local hop” there you run into Billie. From the first self-titled track, an old school world of smooth pop is built with instrumentals that bounce from the driving guitar and twinkled keys of Khodara’s piano. The song is so whimsical in effect you do not really care if Billie is good or bad; you just want to be in Billie’s presence. Yet, “Anxiety” follows as a song and symbol of the difficulty it is to give in to Billie/ relationships. Every time you fall for someone, you are also falling into their light and darkness, which means you will enjoy them and also cry for them. The reality of knowing you will not always like the person you love is so present in love, and thus pop music as a “go to” genre that sweetly and strictly discusses this virtue. Hence, you can end up with a “Twisted Mind”, which is my favorite song from the EP. First, it elaborates what “Billie” and “Anxiety” have built thematically, which is relationships are a mental journey. Whether you realize it or not, you have to connect with yourself to connect with someone else, and “Twisted Mind” is the song that most elaborates, for me, Khodara’s capacity to give artful lyrics to catchy tunes. Moreover, its kick drum and waved synths elevate Khodara’s lovely voice.

Khodara can sing. The classically trained songstress is so precise and clean with her vocals that to hear her lyrics feels like you are looking through glass. She presents her words and emotions with a sophistication that only ups the intelligence/vulnerability from which she derives her songs. It is as if you are listening to the classiest person open up about the grimmest things that love can make you feel. Hence, Khodara ends her EP with “Lunatics”, which seems to be her submission/heartfelt letter that love is madness, but it is the only thing worth going insane for. Bringing a “bluesiness” to both her vocals and subtly to her final track’s composition, overall, the album feels arranged sonically and spiritually to show the craziness of falling in love can only be modernized because, in foundation, it never changes. For more information on Khodara and to buy Billie on March 17 click here.