Review: “Emotional Oranges and the Limits of Anonymity (The Juicebox)
Anonymity is a concept that is hard and easy to come by nowadays when it comes to artists nowadays. The paparazzi is a more physical presence around the Hollywood area, but social media is a more common and widespread presence in general in the era of technology where people have access to what the artists say and do. The more popular you are, the more people looking at you, even when you are absent for a while. However, when you have little public media attention and not that many followers and an infrequent presence, anonymity may come a bit easier to live a normal life.
Sometimes, in the age of social media, the artist extends beyond the music, so much so that the songs can be disregarded from discussion if that level of popularity is reached. However, others just want to make music and not have to deal with having people eavesdrop over their personal details. Of course to market and promote, social media is necessary for people to be aware, but that can be separated from the private life.
Emotional Oranges is one such act, where the members are known pseudonymously as A and V and their headgear being worn when outside of their privacy, despite having the real names appear on their Spotify page. They have a following but it is comparatively small next to a larger artist, and they only follow one other person. They also work behind the scenes prior to their debut in 2019, where A was an audio engineer for Drake and V was a vocal coach for Adele. They are professionals, but on the surface, they appear to not have ambitions to make music of their own, especially when industry songwriters are stepping up to the microphone nowadays. The two met at a bar mitzvah away from the normal jobs according to a Billboard interview, A saw V sing her vocals and was impressed, forming a writing session almost immediately. They fully have three projects under their collective identity: 2019’s The Juice Vol.1 and The Juice Vol.2 and the most recent 2021 project The Juicebox.
Their music has enchanting mixed-gender interplay between A and V laid about slinky sensuous R&B grooves that set a rather chill and downbeat atmosphere. Occasionally, the grooves are slightly upbeat, but for the most part, it is the perfect music for driving your car home in the nighttime or a bar. What also stands out about their music are the honest, complex, and intimate writing about female-male relationships, where neither person in the harshest of situations are completely in the right in both the text and subtext. This gives a sort of universality of both personal and broad enough in the lyrics to apply to any relationship, but it is nevertheless compelling if one decides to listen in closer.
The Juice Vol.1 is pretty much an eight-track collection of straightforward lowkey R&B that also sells you on its stellar interplay and writing, on cuts such as “Personal” and “Motion”, which is consistent in its quality all the way through, making for an amazing debut. The Juice Vol.2 is another project similar in quality, just with a little more sonic diversion and playfulness in its lyrics and production. One might argue that it becomes a little less unique, but it also contains their best song “Heal My Desires”, making with a contender of its debut year.
Their newest project The Juicebox appears to be an intriguing and unique from the previous two, as all 8 tracks contain one guest each, contrasting from the entirely solo affairs from before. It is also concerning given that it felt like the label wanted to add guests in order to push them further into the mainstream. I only recognize two of the guest stars, that being Becky G and Vince Staples, both of which seem to be odd additions on the surface. I was just hoping it can make it through with enough quality to be another solid project, so how was it?
Well, it is a pretty solid Emotional Oranges project, around the ballpark of the previous two with its pockets of complexity and grooves- but it is comparatively lesser than them in only a few ways that color my thoughts on this project. As implied by the title, The Juicebox is a more varied affair, as there are more substances (artists and sounds) bringing a slightly different yet familiar flavor. However, much like an orange, while a juice box brings something slightly new with the substances with the fruit’s flavor and is tasty and refreshing in the moment, the pure orange comparatively is more exquisite and primal to really absorb the feelings as well as being able to share and eat multiple of them.
One of the issues that leads to this opinion, is what I mentioned before: the guest stars. Guest stars are not a negative addition on their own, as they can add a unique perspective, sonic variety and maybe some lyrical complexity to a song and even an album in its greater narrative when utilized properly and sparingly. The guests here play in the same territory as Emotional Oranges, and on the first listen, I thought they were indistinguishable from the main leads, even if it the grooves overtake the lyrics. On a second and much closer listen, it is much easier to distinguish who is singing along with A and V, but the issue pervades that it does not feel that much unique from the other songs from the two projects, not really elevating the material. I do not have anything to say about individual guest performances, as they are all pretty decent, if a bit hard to find a standout performance. Well, there is one “standout” performance, and that comes in Vince Staples’ verse on “Back and Forth”, but I’m not sure that it is for the better. It is not a bad verse, do not get me wrong, but in comparison to the straightforward and more colloquial language of A and V emphasizing the bluntness of their conflicts and arguments, it feels oddly out of place with its brutal lyrics more so belonging on a different song.
Discussed earlier about the anonymity of the group in their identities and performances but where it comes into the music lies in what I mentioned before about the universality of their relationship lyrics. That comes in the language of occurrences and thoughts that appear in a relationship, but that anonymity of artistic identity leads to a lack of personal detail in a sea of broad scenes. The lyrics don’t usually strike the listener the hardest even in the conflicts, with the sole exception of the honest relationship swing-for-the fences moment of “Heal My Desires”. This is not something I care about too much given the writing and sounds make up my enjoyment, but it kind of becomes something that was noticed in The Juicebox, even if it has the exact qualities of the previous two.
For example, the chemistry between A and V is potent through their strongest asset, that being the interplay and how the other person is incorporated into the lyrics. Even on a more “solo” cut like “Corners On My Mind” where A mainly sings, the female presence is there in the backing vocals, making it consistent with the rest of the songs where the two are actively singing. That chemistry is still present on The Juicebox, but it’s more divvied among the guest stars, making them more so hosts to the guest stars, which play a somewhat similar role in the stories. The anonymity feels stretched out, as it feels as if the leads don’t wholly have a stake in the relationships being told. This is evident if you are more familiar with Emotional Oranges, like in this article, but if you are more familiar with the guests, you might think A and V do not really stand out much in their songs, further adding to the anonymity.
One smaller issue than the guests is the sounds blasted throughout the album. This was released around the summertime, and it fits that to a tee, as this has a much more tropical feel that matches “Down To Miami” and “Lock It Up”, supported by the warm guitars and firm bass preparing the grooves that would not be out of place in a summer night party. Sometimes though, I do get the feeling that this more of a diversion than a progression that places them in a different mold than the sensuous and contemplative grooves that I feel can be played at any time and still have a good chill time, even with a g-funk cut like “West Coast Love” that could possibly fit in that time of season. There is nothing wrong with how this sounds in the production, as the vocals are fit in the right place to supplement the grooves whilst still being clear in the mix. This anonymity comes into play here as well, as I think they don’t feel unique if you placed them in a summer R&B playlist, especially when listening to every track. There is a closing track that sounds directly imported from the early 2000s R&B scene, and while I have some fondness for that time, a song like “Corners Of My Mind” sticks a lot more anytime. I do have a nice time listening to this, and it is short enough to replay without getting tiring, but if you’re like me, if you find summer music that sticks with you, there is a greater likelihood that you listen to Anderson. Paak’s Malibu more often due to its stellar sonic variety and how it feels refreshing after so many listens.
All of this is not to say that you should not listen to this album, because I still recommend this to anyone in this season, as well as Emotional Oranges in general. This is just from the perspective of someone who is a fan, especially of good R&B, and I like seeing them get better with the art that they make. I’m not sure of the exact sales, but this satisfies the audience really well, and a benefit of this project is the exposure to some of the guest stars who aren’t as well known, such as Chiiild and Big Piig. This is just my personal opinion, and feel free to disagree with it respectfully. Now all that’s left to do is to expand it into a full album and take the next step, whatever that may be- I want to see where the juice tastes like when that time comes.