Alvinos Zavlis’ “Falling” rewards your attention as it goes from low end pulse to distorted drone framing gently soaring vocals. Elements come in like percussive, syncopated tones that become rapid arpeggios, electronic strings, synth washes, rapidly ascending sounds and then silence as the song takes a very different turn around the two and a half minute mark. Then you feel like you’ve entered a realm of 8-bit video game music like you’ve been transported to some kind of arcade in the 80s but you’re in the game navigating some digital landscape guided by articulated blips and rhythms. Then the tones become muted and blur the line between that 8-bit aesthetic and techno. Near the four minute thirty second mark you exit that realm into one incorporating elements of jazz structure in the low end but surrounded by 8-bit sonic figures to dodge as you travel with Zavlis through an abstract realm drawn along by the haunting vocals at one point pitched high into a childlike falsetto before the fadeout. Impossible to categorize genre-wise but a fascinating listen whether being drawn into the strange, fanciful world of the song or as something in the background to chase away the mundanity of everyday life. Listen to and watch the music video for “Falling” on YouTube and follow Alvinos Zavlis on Soundcloud. Look for the full-length album Time Travels due out in 2020.
Queen City Sounds and Art 
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