Flemish musician Stef Kamil Carlens began his career in the illustrious rock group
dEUS, after which he started his own project
Zita Swoon. That group went through an evolution from experimental, arty rock to americana, with strong
Bob Dylan influences. This in turn culminated in a record full of
Bob Dylan covers (2023) that Carlens, now under his own name, recorded live in 2021 and 2022. It seems
… Carlens had had enough of his Dylan obsession and had some room to pursue other musical avenues again. On Be Who You Wanna Be, we hear a generous sampling of the vintage instrument collection the Belgian has collected over the years. That includes a lot of synthesizers and drum machines from the 1980s, so many of the songs are reminiscent of music from that decade in sound. But Carlens has too much of a personal sound to make "typical" '80s music: even when he sings Bob Dylan, he sounds like himself. Be Who You Wanna Be, in particular, is an upbeat record with soul, funk and synthesizers. Curious as to which ones? In the lyrics of Walk On Red, Stop On Green, he patiently (but rhythmically, of course) lists them one by one for you. (JV)more
