Dorian Electra: My Agenda | 4ZZZ Brisbane 102.1FM

- It seems with every trend in pop history, there has been a queer artist behind the scenes pushing boundaries. The rise of hyper-pop and the PC Music Label in the mid-2010s took the underground pop scene in a new absurdist electronic direction before finally hitting mainstream strides through Charli XCX. Enter Dorian Electra, a frequent collaborator of Charli’s who gained popularity off of their 2019 project Flamboyant. The album stood out, not just for exploring a variety of genres, but also its effortless dissection of gender identity and queer acceptance. Dorian wasted little time returning with their new follow-up project My Agenda.

Dorian’s music has always been propelled by their gender-less image: whether it be their extravagant clothes, hairstyle or manner in which they conduct themselves. My Agenda -both the album and title track- is no different, with Dorian adopting the persona of an incel character who is fearful of LGBTQI culture overtaking 'traditional' values. The track takes a dictatorial stance on the rise of homosexuality with Dorian planning what the incel fears most: mainstream gay culture. The song features gay icons Village People as well as Pussy Riot who take the opportunity to denounce Ugandan anti-gay laws.

The simultaneously released singles Gentleman and M’Lady further satirise the incel stereotype as they dissect the popular “fedora-tipping nice guy” meme. The production on both of these tracks is loud and boisterous with bass heavy drums and trap snares. Gentleman has the incel insisting on their nice-guy charm while M’Lady has the same character claim to love women yet degrade them for attributes such as weight and sexual history.

Lead single Sorry Bro (I Love You) is a hard-hitting attack on toxic masculinity. Dorian confesses his love for a male friend but proclaims it’s still “no homo” despite their constant wrestling. Co-produced by Dylan Brady of 100 Gecs fame, the track features similar production to that of a typical Gecs song with over-exaggerated tinny drums and electronic drops.

Edgelord may have the most surprising feature of 2020 with Dorian recruiting 2011 meme Rebecca Black to take his incel character straight to the 4chan message boards, making humorous attacks on those who use The Joker as a role model for societal living. Ridiculing the “edgelords” who claim fluctuating gender identity is a myth, Dorian and Rebecca come together like Batman and Robin over wailing heroic guitars.

Closing track Give Great Thanks is explicit to say the least. Dorian’s incel character accepts LGBT culture being shoved down their throat as a punishment equating to… another act the real Dorian enjoys. The vocals are steamy and breathy as Dorian amps their autotune wails up to eleven over video-game-esque synths.

My Agenda is a solid follow-up to Flamboyant, proving Dorian can take most any concept involving queer people and escalate it so far that intolerance becomes humorous. While the album is short, at a mere twenty-five minutes, and many songs here could be slightly fleshed out, Dorian is still able to create a lot of substance with their topics while still making, what I guess is, a pop album.

- James Chadwick.<iframe style="border: 0; width: 100%; height: 120px;" src="https://bandcamp.com/EmbeddedPlayer/album=4055473971/size=large/bgcol=f…; seamless><a href="https://dorianelectra.bandcamp.com/album/my-agenda">My Agenda by DORIAN ELECTRA</a></iframe>
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