There’s a certain point when Eighties music starts to resemble Sixties pop with then-cutting edge/now cheesy and nostalgic synthesizers. Melodies are simple and effortless, and the lyrics usually deal with the emotional upheaval of love won or lost. Judging by the video of “Gardenias,” Elsa De Alfonso just gets this.
Directed by Marçal Forés with production courtesy of record label Canada, the video is set in a piano bar where Elsa gets interviewed by the tuxedo-clad director before taking the stage to sing the melancholic melody supported by the digital sounds of decades past. The Barcelona scenester-turned-singer then proceeds to drink and act the heartbreaker for the ladies at the club, inciting seduction and a little bit of drama before going to the dressing room with some company. “Some” might be an understatement but you should probably judge that for yourself.
“Gardenias” has more than a passing resemblance of the post-Movida pop that swept Spain and the rest of the Spanish-speaking world in the Eighties, thanks to the contributions of Elsa’s band Los Prestigio, which is made up by members of Extraperlo and Doble Pletina. The songs comes off the Desencuentros EP released late last year, which has gathered De Alfonso great critical response. Definitely someone to keep an eye on.