Dear listeners, today I want to invite you on an extraordinary musical adventure. An Australian artist, Former Child Star, who prefers to maintain an air of mystery around their name, has just released their debut EP ‘Five Phantoms’, and it’s a true immersion into the hidden depths of the soul, wrapped in misty sound.

You know, some artists have a gift for opening portals to other dimensions through the power of sound alone. Our hero, a singer and multi-instrumentalist from Brisbane, effortlessly transports the listener to the edge of the real and the mystical. His music is the complete opposite of Australia’s sunny image. It’s a somber, ghostly alt pop, born in the darkness of a studio in Indooroopilly, Queensland.

From the very first notes of the opening track ‘Nausea,’ there’s something surreal, like waking up in the middle of the night from a strange dream. Former Child Star’s androgynous vocals, his main instrument, hover somewhere between reality and vision. Is it angelic singing or an otherworldly call? Hard to tell. And around it unfolds a bizarre sonic extravaganza with hints of a psychedelic circus. Synthesizers, like serpentine tempters, weave intricate patterns, drawing you deeper into this looking-glass world.

The next stop is ‘Right Where We Left Them.’ After the dizzying ‘Nausea,’ it feels like a breather, but not for long. Viscous melancholy envelops you in a thick fog from the first seconds. Former Child Star said he was inspired by Regina Spektor and Soccer Mommy, and it’s felt in the airiness of the track, in the hazy dreampop atmosphere. And his voice, ethereal and elusive, definitely comes from another dimension.

The central track of the EP, in my opinion, is ‘The Invisible Man.’ Here, it’s as if neon lights turn on and some dark psychedelic carnival begins. Alarming and alluring synths, on the edge of industrial, weave into a bizarre electronic web in which one can hopelessly get stuck. Just like in the labyrinths of the subconscious, which is the real theme of this EP.

Speaking of the subconscious, the next track, ‘I Tried To Eat My Shadow,’ is a vivid illustration of Jung’s concept of the Shadow, that dark side of the soul that we strive to hide from the world and from ourselves. Psychedelia comes to the forefront here completely. Echoes, distorted samples, incomprehensible whispers, like a waking nightmare. Experimental electronics à la Radiohead meets art pop. Creepy? Yes. But even creepiness can be alluring when served up so inventively by this former child star.

Finally, the closing track ‘A Place On The Train’ returns us to the languid atmosphere and now it thickens to the limit. A thick some kind of dense grey haze in which the piano sounds get stuck, leaving only the voice: tired, hopeless, and all the more beautiful for it. The perfect sad finale for such a five-song adventure.

You know, when I was listening to the final notes of ‘A Place On The Train,’ I had some complex, ambivalent aftertaste. As if I had just returned from a parallel reality full of twilight wonders, but never quite managed to get out of it. I guess that’s how real music should work, changing the listener, leaving its strange imprint on them.

So what’s the bottom line? ‘Five Phantoms’ is a unique EP in its concept and execution. Risky, captivating, hooking, getting under your skin. For aesthete music lovers and connoisseurs of the unusual, it’s a real gift. It’s even surprising that such a distinctive and unconventional material is a debut. I want to believe that this is just the beginning of a long and exciting journey for this talented artist.

Heey Former Child Star! Thank you for releasing such wonderful music! I really liked how your music feels like a magical shadow theater, full of mysterious images and metaphors. That truly came through while listening. Five Phantoms really makes you reflect and enjoy the soul of great music. Keep staying true to your unique vision. I will definitely show your release to everyone so they can listen to such amazing music too. I love it and want more!

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