The video for Firstworld’s new track “Not Obvious” dropped today, its aesthetic blissfully reflective of the South Florida-based project’s chillwave-friendly aesthetic. Chilled-out vocals, a tight bass line, and nocturnal synths help form this engaging aesthetic, with hooks abound over the blue/purple-tinted visuals.
The alias of Kris Alvarez, Firstworld is a South Florida-based artist and producer. His excellent tracks “Space” and “Not Obvious” precede the release of I’m Right Here, a 6-track EP that represents the project’s first big release, releasing on June 22nd. Largely inspired by true events, I’m Right Here is referred to as “a modern love story riddled with ambiguity and uncertainty. The story is chronicled through six songs, each one depicting a difficult and confusing stage in a relationship. In the pursuit of love, we often confuse or conflate the things we want with what we need at the moment, leaving us unfulfilled once the dust has settled.”
“Firstworld began two years ago as an outlet for me to write darker, more lo-fi songs than what I was producing for my band at the time, Sigh Kicks,” Kris explains. “After Sigh Kicks split a couple of months after, Firstworld became my main project. It would turn out to be the first time I had been in a project where I was the primary songwriter, and also the first time I wouldn’t be using guitars in my music”
Alvarez has no reluctance to embrace the “chillwave” label in both sound and appearance, particularly fond of the genre’s early successes, like Washed Out’s around the time of Life of Leisure or Neon Indian on 2009 epic Psychic Chasms. What initially began as an outlet to write darker more lo-fi songs has transformed into a full-fledged project currently boasting two other members, drummer Daniella Chamorro (formerly of Palette Town) and Joey Prats (Salas), with Alvarez as the principal composer.
