Danica Bryant – Feast (13th Floor Album Review)
Wellington-based pop artist Danica Bryant has finally dropped her highly anticipated album, Feast. Exploring musings on topics like growing up, neurodiversity, sexuality and femininity, Danica has created a relatable record that’s eclectic, catchy and fun. In a year when Danica has hit new heights, this is just the freshest one she’s conquered.
The album starts with Introduction, a slow ballad that pulls the listener in from the first note. With guitars behind her, Danica‘s voice is alluring and mysterious. Shrouded in lyrics like ‘I’ll keep you always listening’, ‘I will be your only friend, need no apprehension’ and ‘satirise your sadness’, Feast is immediately captivating, especially with the addition of harmonies partway through this track.
The mood changes with the second song Burlesque Witch. Featuring percussion, guitar plucks and intense bass during the chorus, Danica addresses the pressure to keep a certain look in the entertainment industry. This is the first song where it becomes clear that Danica has a lot of vocal dexterity – switching between enticing, sarcastic and beguiling in equal measure. It’s also upbeat and danceable – it would be an incredible song to hear live.
Androgyny Alchemy is another song that would be great to hear in a club setting. It’s giving celebration and revelation, with its snappy beat and witty lyrics. The best lyric in it is definitely ‘you turn me on when you turn into you’ – it really encapsulates the song’s core theme. In Love (With A Girl) is a romantic, beautiful song that aptly encompasses the feeling of falling in love with someone without inhibitions and how it makes the world feel more special. Featuring lyrics like ‘I’ll love you when your wings unfurl’ and ‘no more sugar in my coffee’, if there’s one enamouring song on Feast – this is it.
Midway through the album is the pop-rock anthem Buzz, which originally hit the ears of listeners earlier this year. Telling the story of getting ready for a night out, it has dense instrumental layers, a gravelly chorus and a blitzy, bombshell chorus. With the underlying themes of girlhood and self-expression, who wouldn’t want to listen to Buzz is the question. It’s followed by Acid, a song featuring more dense basslines that’s reminiscent of the 2000s. About sapphic attraction in a party environment, it’s both sexy and high energy. It took NZ by storm when it first came out, and no doubt will continue to now that it’s officially on Feast.
Cinnamon is slower, but still equally catchy. Going from powerhouse vocals to something softer mixed with guitars and drums, it’s contemplative and moving. Heavily centring around a relationship where the experience of care is a novelty, and the experience of leaning into that despite your own struggles. Listeners then get the upbeat treat of The Band, a celebration of, well, Danica‘s band and the undeniable bond they all share. It’s similar to, of course, Maisie Peters’ hit song The Band & I, immortalising their memories in the music directly. Lyrics describing ‘forces of nature’, ‘take my picture, rock and roll’ and the cheeky ‘we’re so Hawkes Bay’, it’s clear that these guys are super tight in both a professional setting and otherwise. It’s cheerful and jubilant – and listeners will love it as much as the band surely do.
Old Chocolate takes us back to the slow energy and is the oldest song from Feast. With open-hearted country-folk vibes similar to on Cinnamon, Danica aptly addresses the (rightfully scary) idea that sometimes people just fall out of love – and there’s nothing you can really do to stop it, just sense it fading into indifference.
Narcissist has the album’s first and only feature, in the form of fellow Wellington artist Julia Belle. The primary theme here centres around whether you need to be slightly selfish to chase what you want in life. With high-pitched vocals and easy-to-listen instrumentals, it also covers the topic of neurodiversity, and processing that you can’t always focus on the needs of others if it means you’re neglecting yourself as you do too. It’s bittersweet, and almost mournful at parts, and the harmonisations of Julia bring it all together. All The World’s A Theatre is at times not the most cohesive when the aspects are analysed singularly, but together they work effortlessly. Focusing on the ideas of feeling like a marionette and being constantly studied, All The World’s A Theatre does a very good job of expressing how it feels to be the object of scrutiny, especially when it doesn’t always feel like you belong.
Morals is another one of the pre-released singles from the album, originally released in February. Invigorating and electrifying, it’s got seamless emotional depth, catchy pop hooks and a universally relatable subject matter – all the things required for a stellar pop song.
(I’ll Be Your) Drag Queen is endlessly fun. The music video features Bunny Holiday (from TVNZ’s House of Drag) and is a fitting ode to femininity and identity as a form of performance. It also ties seamlessly into the previous songs on the latter half of the album, many of which feature the idea of dressing up and putting on a ‘mask’ for an audience – whoever that may be.
It’s safe to say, this is an incredible debut album by Danica. If this is where she’s at this early in her career, it’s going to be highly impressive to see where she goes next.
Chantal Janice
Feast is out now:
Listen HERE
Buy Vinyl HERE
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