Mikel – Poké & Chill 2

Mikel – Poké & Chill 2 – Album Review

Oh no.

Don’t tell me I gotta be one of those walking zombies staring at my phone, swiping my life away trying to catch fictional characters to get this album…that’s like…not a prerequisite, right?  *actually begging

Okay…so…yeah.  I’m probably the only person in the world that isn’t going to pick up on any references or relevant info when it comes to this album by Mikel.  I’m not even one of those people that’ll tell you to ‘touch grass’ or anything like that – I’m online every damn day, I’m just not…you know…Pokémon-ing?  If that’s something YOU do, then right on…I’m happy you’re happy.  *please don’t ask me to join

Gonna have to stay pretty firmly in my lane this time around I’m afraid.  I’ll be able to tell you what sounds good, so how about that instead of a bunch of details and information bogging us down while you’re trying to quickly read an article in between catching more silly little colored lights on your phone Pokémon.  From what I’ve seen online from Mikel so far, he’s carving out a pretty good career by creating a bunch of tunes inspired from videogames.  He’s always chillin’ from what I can see.  Zelda & Chill, Poké & Chill, Middle-Earth & Chill…you get it.  I’ve heard he likes to eat his ice cream hot like a soup, which would be kind of strange for sure…but that’s just a rumor I think…don’t quote me on that.  Other than that, you’ll catch him chillin’ at all times while creating some kinda music for ya to enjoy.

So what do I think about “Gotta Catch’em All,” you ask?  It’s pleasant.  I wasn’t feeling indifferent to it – how about that?  Would I, a grown-ass man, put on “Gotta Catch’em All” in my spare time outside of doing music reviews?  Maybe, actually.  I’m not above this.  Mikel’s pulling his weight…it’s well made, it sounds good, it’s welcoming…like I said at the start, it’s pleasant…and what else should music be if not that?  It’s kind of a cute little ol’ theme if you ask me, but Mikel adds additional class through the piano sounds added in, and cleverness in the structure.  You’ll hear it muted a bit at each side of the recording, which ends up giving the entire mid-section of this song the opportunity to sound even more colorful than it might have been otherwise.  I can get behind this…it’s inoffensive, family-friendly type-music.

You know what I mean…errr…lemme put it in videogame parlance…this is rated E for Everyone – that make more sense now?  I’m never going to have a clue as to where the inspiration for “New Bark Town” comes from, and believe me when I tell ya, this dog right here is way too old to care learn.  Music is my thing, and I try to keep it that way as best I can.  My wife would know all kinds of other stuff about this album I’m sure, she plays Pokémon Go all the freakin’ time…so much that I can barely get her to watch a movie or a show anymore without jailing Pokémons while we’re sitting on the couch.  Maybe if I present this record to her, turn the lights down low…maybe, just maybe, Poké & Chill 2 might spark some action.  I’ll keep you posted on that.  Meanwhile, sure…”New Bark Town” is again, very pleasant & nice to listen to.  I was two cuts into this record when it occurred to me that’s probably going to be my main opinion.  The melody is legitimately sweet though…I’ve really got no major concerns about anything I’m hearing.

What I wouldn’t advise doing, is taking something like this too seriously.  It’s meant to be light, it’s meant to be fun…don’t go gettin’ critical like I do, it’s not an interesting way to be.  Like, I’m sitting here listening to “Cherrygrove City” and thinking to myself, yeah…I don’t know if I need to visit this place, I feel like I get it.  Comparatively to the opening two tracks…I dunno…it felt like there’s a little less goin’ on with “Cherrygrove City” and that this particular slice of Poké & Chill 2 might be a bit too laidback to really get us excited about what we’re listening to.  I don’t hate it…in fact, I’d be willing to go as far as to say if you like something on this album, you’ll probably like it all.  Do I need feel the need to rush to repeat “Cherrygrove City?”  I do not.  But I honestly wouldn’t turn this off if someone already had it on.

I’ll tell you this in Mikel’s defense too – I know there’s a market for what he’s creating here.  It’s not me – I’m not the target demographic – but there ARE many folks out there that dig their videogame soundtracks and videogame soundtrack style type tunes.  No judgments here, like what you like, love what you love.  As I flipped over to “Violet City,” I felt like I was about to come to the same conclusions more or less…well-composed, great production…and just not all that thrilling.  I mean, we knew that going in though…we’re chillin’ and not thrillin’ here, and I understand that.  Do I know of ‘chill’ music that IS exciting?  I do.  Plenty of it actually…it can be done, believe it or not.  As to whether or not “Violet City” is going to raise your pulse even one iota…I’ll leave that up to you & your wearable heart monitors to decide.  For myself personally, I need a little bit more than what’s going on throughout Poké & Chill 2 so far – “Violet City” sounds like I’m out for a walk with my head in the clouds, or passed out in a chair somewhere daydreaming while my head is being pumped full of that sweet sweet nitrous oxide stuff.

There we go!  “Littleroot Town” felt like it was going to drift a bit further away from that classic saunter that videogame themes love to play within…and yeah…I felt like there was a more substantial song at the core of this track…at least kind of?  There is technically more involved here, but it’s still hard to grasp how this might resonate enough with the people out there to be considered daily listening material.  I’m sure there’s a time and a place where “Littleroot Town” would be the go-to jam on a playlist or two, but I’m just not sure when that would be for me.  So while, yes, it was nice to hear a little additional complexity, it wasn’t so much that you wouldn’t feel like you’re still chillin’ – do NOT panic…ain’t no one about to harsh your vibe, Mikel included.  To me, “Littleroot Town” was highly impressive to listen to as it began and settled into doing what it does…and from about a minute & ten seconds in, I feel like I got the picture from there more or less.  The sound selection is fantastic though, and the melody is unique – I like that.  I want a little more dynamism than there is, but hey, we’re supposed to be chillin’ out y’all.

“Rustboro City” is the FUN I was promising you that you’d find at the beginning of this review.  Love the piano work here once again…more-so for the skill on display this time around.  Look…I think it’s fair to say that Poké & Chill 2 and I are going to be a little at odds with each other – I like instrumental music quite a bit, but I’m not one of those dudes that fawns over the music in videogames…it just ain’t me.  Do I get why other people out there would love “Rustboro City?”  Sure I do.  Barely perhaps, but I do get it.  Again, it’s hard to dispute or rail against music that’s THIS degree of inoffensive.  Like…you’d have to be among the hardest of hearts to want to complain too much about anything you’ll hear on Poké & Chill 2.  “Rustboro City” has a bit more of a classical/instrumental fabric to its DNA, which is kind of what makes it a bit harder for me to enjoy as we’ve still got wandering around the map type of sound along with it.  If I filter out what surrounds the piano in “Rustboro City,” then I don’t really mind the rest of what’s left.  Some of the moments for the flute end up creating significant highlights within “Rustboro City” as well.

Fun fact…I actually DID participate in the recent world-event that Pokémon held here in Vancouver like, last month I think?  It wasn’t by choice of course, but my wife needed a wingman to help walk our dog at the same time, so I went with her.  And yes, it was every bit as insane as I thought it might be.  Like, I knew it would be…but somehow it was still even more scary than I pictured with people basically walking straight into each other because they’re so busy staring at their phones.  Would I have been a whole lot calmer if I was listening to “Lake Verity” while I was walking around the lower mainland here in BC?  I think most definitely.  Of all the tracks in the first half of Poké & Chill 2, “Lake Verity” is by far and away my favorite in the first seven songs.  I’m sure some dedicated Poké-fan will tell me that this whole entire track comes from the four-hundred & thirty-ninth level where you catch a special Snorlax or something…but I’m just hearing an objectively stellar song that doesn’t seem as tied to the videogame aspect of the sound that so much of the rest contains.  Instead, we’ve just got an instrumental that really hits the mark here…”Lake Verity” is as smooth as smooth can be.  I’d listen to this for sure…Mikel has fully exceeded all expectations I had with this particular track – I LOVE this song.

Oh yeah…we in it now.  “Route 216” was another cut that felt like it had more to it than the essence of your favorite videogame…this is jazzy…this is classy…this is the mood and the moment combined, yes indeed.  So there you have it folks, right as you finish side A and flip this over to side B (yes, I’m THAT old), you’ll find Poké & Chill 2 is really starting to hit its stride.  Sometimes all you need is a track or two to get people onboard enough to listen, and if you can hook’em in, you know those subsequent spins will make an even bigger impact.  The back-to-back pairing of “Lake Verity” and “Route 216” makes for a powerfully potent moment in this album’s set-list, and while there’s some risk that comes along with having these strengths presented fairly deep into the lineup, I feel like it’s a better late than never type of scenario.  All I know is I’m into it…it took a while, and it took tracks that felt a little less game-y to me before I got there, but I’m there now, and Mikel deserves all the credit for why that is.  He’s done all the right things when it comes to quality (what’s in his control in performances/production)…beyond that, it’s all just personal taste (what’s out of his control in hearing curmudgeonly opinions like mine out loud or in writing).  When things line up for both of those together, that’s where you’ll find me most excited.  The most you’re going to find me conceding to you is that a track like “Route 216” is actually built on a whole lot of old-school sounds…but again, to his credit, Mikel has refreshed it all right into relevance.

You regular readers know me…I do the best I can to be objective about what I hear, whether or not I like whatever it is I happen to be listening to.  So…trust me when I tell ya, even though I’ve only had this album for a relatively short amount of time, I spun it as much as I could…mainly because I kept trying to convince myself that I had to be missing something.  Did the album really get THAT much better at song seven – or was I just not paying proper attention?  Ultimately, you’re going to be the judge and jury on that of course, but heck yeah, if you want my opinion, “Lake Verity” was the moment this whole album seemed to shift right into the realm of something I’d happily listen to, and Mikel went on a fantastic roll from that point forward.  Even “Driftwell City” for example…at first, I was a little hesitant…almost like I was bracing myself for Mikel to go back to the stuff he’d been workin’ on in the first half of this record that seemed like it was all missing a little of the oomph it needed – but it wasn’t before long that this cut revealed its jazzy roots and twinkling piano parts…and by that point, I realized I was pretty hooked on this cut too.  When Mikel’s really on his game…his music, not an actual game…he’s excellent to listen to.

I was off by a track…it was “Verdanturf Town” that felt like we’d returned to the album’s first half for the most part.  Mikel’s always got some interesting piano parts in the mix, and I appreciate that.  I think that much of my resistance probably comes from how these songs are really created in a one-dimensional type of way, because that’s where the original inspiration comes from, you feel me?  So like…you end up in places like “Verdanturf Town” where you’re like…practically wishing there was a more complex palette on display than what there is.  It starts happy, it ends happy, and it was happy all the way through – that’s what I’m getting at…there’s not very much of a significant arc when it comes to how these songs move, and I feel like we kind of need that as listeners to stay fully engaged with the material.  Don’t get me wrong, when that piano takes the lead, I’m listening…so there are definitely pieces and moments in “Verdanturf Town” that’ll catch your attention…but it still feels like you want a bit more on your plate.  You know, like how the perfect recipes all have sweet, salty, sour, etc. etc. to make a balanced dish, but you can taste the emphasis and influence of each component.  With what I’m hearing on Poké & Chill 2, I need a little more seasoning, versatility, and the dynamism I’ve mentioned.  It’s pleasant to listen to though…Mikel is nothing else if not consistently pleasant.  Relentlessly pleasant.

Hmmm!  I love a challenge.  I still don’t know exactly how I feel about “Fortree City.”  Part of me thinks this is right up there with my favorites, but I’ve also had spins through this album where it felt like it was another tune that belonged with the material from the first half of Poké & Chill 2.  I’m gonna go ahead and give this one the benefit of the doubt though, and say that I do in fact, enjoy this quite a bit.  I think it’s largely because the sound selection on “Fortree City” might be some of the record’s very best and most intriguing.  It’s got a bit of an ‘under the sea’ type of vibe to it at times as well…mostly towards the end of the song I guess, but yeah…there’s a beautifully dreamy melody at the core of this song as well, and I’d be lying to you by omission if I didn’t tell ya how enticing that part of “Fortree City” can truly be.  So…again…to sum this one up…I feel like I liked it more times than I didn’t like it in the time that I’ve been listening to it so far, and I feel like I have every reason to believe my attachment to it will continue to grow.  “Fortree City” has a subtle charm and magic to it that feels very warm and inviting to listen to.

I’m cool with “Eterna City” I reckon…this is the kind of gentle chill I tend to enjoy.  Lots of piano involved, but also a spacious & serene atmosphere that seems extremely well designed with you hear the flawless fluidity of this song as it flows from start to finish.  It’s always tough to examine a record like this when it comes right down to it – so don’t take any of the hard times I’ve been passing out as the gospel – the truth is that Mikel is doing what he set out to do, and it’d be really hard to find any significant faults in the results from what my ears can hear.  I really dig it when he drifts just a little further outta the games and into the classical realm…I think it makes a difference, and even though he’s establishing his name in the scene as a dude that adapts videogame style music, I listen to tracks like “Eterna City” and think it’d be just as great to listen to what Mikel can do outside of the videogame realm too.  Time will tell…maybe that’s in the cards for the future, I don’t know – but I do know that I’m really enjoying the dreamy sound of “Eterna City” and it sounds like I want to go to there.  I’d live in “Eterna City” if it sounds like this, yessir.  There’s no disputing the talent that Mikel is bringing to the music he makes.

As subtle as it might be, there’s a lot of groove at the core of “Professor Sycamore” as it begins, and I dig that too.  As it progressed, I felt like I might not have been as into it as I was at the very start, but I still didn’t mind a lot of what followed as it felt like it was a new avenue of sound to the album overall, and as always, Mikel made sure it was as well-executed as the rest has been.  It’s an interesting track to listen to in the sense that it’s one of the most diverse cuts on Poké & Chill 2, and now that we’ve got one we can specifically point to, I wasn’t as sure that this is what I wanted as much as I assumed it had been.  Would we be better off with the more one-dimensional type tunes that have adorned the majority of the record, or is something with a little more variation like “Professor Sycamore” what we’re looking for?  Ultimately, I’m always going to advocate for doing more, even when things don’t completely work out.  I salute Mikel for adding more depth and dimension to “Professor Sycamore,” and I think for the most part, listeners will appreciate the versatility found here as well.  As to whether or not that led this cut to a total victory…that’s probably more up for debate.  What I like, I really like a lot…what I don’t, is still alright enough – but beyond all that, I’m just happy to hear Mikel roaming a bit more with his ideas to see what else can be done on the inside of one track – “Professor Sycamore” is a more ambitious cut.

“Pallet Town” makes for a quaint and (surprise!) pleasant ending to this experience…nothing too wild, nothing too dramatic…just a nice calm chill, much as the title of this record has implied all along.  The main melody is appealing…I’m not going to say it’s groundbreaking or that it’s the track of all tracks in that regard, but it makes for a sweet last listen as the album wraps up.  I keep coming back to Mikel’s original mission, to Poké & Chill 2 – and I think when you’re looking at this record from that viewpoint, you have to acknowledge that he’s achieved what he set out to accomplish, and he’s done that with sparkling quality & crystal clarity.  Everything within his control, he’s nailed down tight to the way that he’s envisioned this record to come out I’m sure…and that’s all you can ever really ask for.  I love the bass-lines in “Pallet Town” as the album comes to a close…it’s great to hear that robust low-end against the sweet backdrop of the melody surrounding it…it’s a highly satisfying conclusion – how about that?  I feel like there’s still plenty of room for Mikel to evolve in his craft to ensure that it’s not just quality music he’s making, but material that will make a memorable impact…like…he’s got plenty of room to be more daring & bold with his art, but at the same time, I also really appreciate that he’s found a space of his own within the musical realm that makes him happy too.  At the end of the day, we’re the most important customer/consumer of what we create…it’s always nice for things to resonate with other people, and I’m sure this album has an audience…but as long as Mikel is happy with it, that’s all that really matters.  If you build it, they will come, as they old saying goes – Mikel’s building and crafting a legacy of his own design – dude’s racking up MILLIONS of hits on his material…so trust me, he’s doing just fine – the people that are finding his music are clearly sticking around to hear what comes next.

Find out more about Mikel from the official website at:  https://mikelbeats.com

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