The 2012 self-titled debut from Melody’s Echo Chamber was a sublime collection of psychedelic dreampop made distinctive by Melody Prochet’s Gallic sensibilities. Much was made of the sonic signature of Tame Impala’s Kevin Parker, who produced and played on the record, but anyone assuming that it was his project and Prochet just the face/voice grossly underestimated her.
The two split romantically around 2014, and a second album that likely would have been a straighter continuation of the first was scrapped as a result. Instead, she began work on an all-new set of material collaborating with Swedes Reine Fiske of psych-rock band Dungen and Fredrik Swahn of The Amazing, that was set to be released it in 2017. However, an unspecified serious accident left Prochet in hospital for an extended stretch; a tour was canceled and the record’s release was pushed back to June 2018.
Prochet did not do a lot of press for the record and no live performances, and the world is fortunate that the record was even released at all, given the circumstances, as it’s a real achievement that transcends its predecessor in both its reach and grasp. But the interviews she did give – conducted over email – are both guarded and revealing as she fielded questions about her relationship with Parker, the scrapped second album, the creation and eventual release of Bon Voyage, and her current (circa 2018, at least) state of affairs:
Melody’s Echo Chamber: ‘My lyrics have this long echo in my reality’ @ The Guardian
Melody’s Echo Chamber’s ‘Bon Voyage’ is The Psychedelic Trip of the Year @ Noisey via Vice
Melody’s Echo Chamber On Her Comeback Album Following a Serious Health Scare @ Pitchfork
Additionally, she had a more personal conversation with Nick Allbrook of POND, who stopped in on the Bon Voyage recording sessions and contributes spoken word to one track, for Laneway:
Melody’s Echo Chamber x POND’s Nick Allbrook @ Laneway
The record was accompanied by a trio of animated videos, all echoing the album art and general trippiness of the music contained therein:
