Skydaddy - ‘Pilot’ | EP Review
March 06 | Written By Becca Stokes
This month Richard Fakhre, who goes by the name Skydaddy, gifted us his debut EP, ‘Pilot’ - bidding farewell to his previous musical venture, Spang Sisters, and drawing inspiration from the exploration of his Lebanese Heritage, not only the lyricism, but the instrumentals,and visuals of the accompanying music-videos, are multi-layered and drawn from a wealth of experience and inspiration.
‘His Masterpiece’ , a lamenting ballad with a likeness to the unmistakable sound of 60s pop, opens the EP. Like the counter-culture musicians of that decade, Fakhre draws on political, cultural, and intimate themes, which grants his music a noteworthy level of depth and meaning. His creative process and immense personal connection to his work sets him apart in the music scene of the 2020’s- a time when the importance of being multifaceted is often disregarded.
The track makes reference to the novel L'Œuvre, and it’s protagonist: the song, alike the novel, depicts the tale of a painter struggling with his relationship with his art: ‘The song is ultimately about alienation, bitterness and the struggle of creativity”. Having grappled with dissatisfaction and existentialism in his music career in 2022, there is a possibility that Rachid saw himself in the novel’s disillusioned protagonist, which ironically inspired him to create the impactful track that is ‘His Masterpiece’.
What begins as a simple piano ballad grows into a layered track with wonderful attention to detail. The soft lull of backing vocals beautifully accompany the sound of strings and from start to finish, ‘ His Masterpiece’ acts as an alluring introduction to the EP.
Rachid sustains his story-telling prowess and unique perspective throughout the EP, from encapsulating his heritage in the instrumental second track ‘Lebanon Rising’ to exploring his experience of not feeling at home in his house in the often lonely and inhospitable city of London in the third track ‘Everything’.
On stage Rachid leads an 8-piece band- the only way to translate the unique-nature of his music to a live audience but on this EP he is responsible for recording but all but the strings and flute- an impressive feat of commitment and a showcase of his multitude of talents. He appeared with English post-rock band Black Country, New Road on their May 2023 tour and is joined by their vocalist and bass player, Tyler Cryde, on the penultimate track, ‘Tear Gas’.
Born from Tyler Cryde’s reworked version of Rachid’s original version of the song, which he had penned a few years prior, ‘Tear Gas’ delves into the toxicity and raw emotion of a doomed relationship, with the added element of Cryde’s vocals allowing the listener an enhanced level of immersion into the story being told, asif the ill-fated lovers are telling the story themselves. The pair engage in back and fourths, harmonise together and ultimately portray the turbulence of a love with the ‘cruelest intentions’
‘That Morning’, the track responsible for closing the EP, is a climactic song written in what was a climactic time for Fakhre: ‘I started manically playing guitar to quell the loudness in my head and the chords and melody came out.”. ‘This Morning’ brings the EP to a close with the same drama found in a movie-score. In some ways, experiencing this track feels like bidding farewell to Fakhre, who you quickly feel connected to from the outset of the EP, and left wanting to hear more of his creations by the end.
Pilot is now available to stream across all platforms.