I really wanted to like this ‘Split’ between Joie De Vivre and Prawn, and on the first note of Joie De Vivre’s opening track ‘Martin Park’, things were looking good. Joie De Vivre have a chilled, Balance and Composure vibe, and the mournful delivery of this song really caught my attention.

However as the EP progressed, it just failed to hold my interest. The songs are fairly repetitive, and far too similar to stand out from each other, which causes ‘Split’ to melt into one long track. On repeat listens, I found myself zoning out and unable to differentiate from each track as they sludged into each other. None of it was bad; it was just hopelessly hung in the background, unable to break out.

Split by Joie De Vivre & Prawn

Thankfully there are still some nice moments to be enjoyed here. Prawn’s ‘Why You Always Leave A Note’ is the standout track for me, with the repetition of “bury your love” and a great interlude giving the track something that I feel the rest of the EP is lacking. Unfortunately, nice just about sums it up, it’s neither terrible nor impressive. Whilst ‘Split’ is a perfectly pleasant offering, and by no means a bad release, there’s nothing here to warrant extra listens.

Both bands have plenty of potential, but I feel it’s not been demonstrated here. That being said, I would listen to both bands future releases, it’s just ‘Split’ lacks some of the dynamics needed to make it stand out from the crowd.

3/5

‘Split’ by Joie De Vivre and Prawn is out now via Topshelf Recordsand Count Your Lucky Stars Records.

Joie De Vivre links: Facebook|Twitter

Prawn links: Facebook|Twitter|Myspace

Words by Jay Sullivan.