Scarypoolparty: A Very Special Almost Acoustic Livestream at the Hotel Cafe

By Katy Trinh

On October 23, 2020, Scarypoolparty and his band performed a “soft acoustic” Livestream show at the Hotel Cafe. This live music venue opened in 2000 and is located in Hollywood, CA. It has become known for helping to establish the careers of new singer-songwriters. The venue began as a coffee shop but has gained a reputation as an intimate performance space. Singers/songwriters, such as John Mayer, Adele, Ed Sheeran, and Katy Perry performed there.

His setlist included:

Out Loud

Falling Down

Poison

10 Years

Millennial Love

Tonight

10 Years

Return2Sender

Fake Smiles

Cholo Love

I am a huge fan of Scarypoolparty. I recently discovered him back in March while watching Season 18 of American Idol. There were several references to a guy named Alejandro Aranda. Who is he and why was his name mentioned so often? Out of curiosity, I googled him...and lo and behold, it was like I had found buried treasure. I watched his American Idol performances in awe. I went to his YouTube channel and found his summer acoustic tour performances as well as his fall tour with his band, Lollapalooza, Life is Beautiful, and Austin City Limits. I read articles referencing Aranda as a “musical savant” from Ones to Watch, Billboard, Alt Press, and Grammy Museum. I found his genre-blending music on Soundcloud and Spotify. Then there was his Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter pages. I listened to and fell in love with his album, Exit Form. I completely immersed myself in his music and from then on, I knew I had found a once-in-a-lifetime artist.

When the live stream began, I noticed the soft lighting and intimate setting immediately. I knew right away I was in for a treat that night. The performance started with just Aranda and his guitar. He often begins with either a guitar or piano intro and this was no different. His intro sets the tone of the performance and truly puts you in a trance as you are instantly transported to Scarypoolparty’s musical world. He began with his signature song, “Out Loud.” This song is very telling of his childhood. He has often said it’s about the ability to speak the truth and being able to express himself, which he was not able to do while growing up. As soon as he started singing “Hold me, closer than your fantasy…” I got chills. His smooth voice, genius songwriting skills, and effortless stage presence are what often pulls the audience in and keeps them wanting more.

His next song doesn’t have a name but his fans have named it “Falling Down.” This is another familiar song, as he had played it during his summer acoustic tour, at the Grammy Museum performance as well as during a few of his other live streams...and not to mention in his Instagram clips that he has posted. In this song, I felt that he was one with his guitar. His amazing guitar skills and the drawn-out moan he added in this song makes me truly appreciate him as a talented musician.

“Poison” is a song that his fans often enjoy listening to. He has mentioned that he struggled with the strum pattern in this song when he wrote it. You would have never known that by the way he beautifully sang and played it that night.

Aranda then mentioned that he was going to play 2 renditions of the song, “10 Years.” After that song, he will invite his band to play. He wanted to showcase 2 different styles and experiment with sounds on these tracks. Being a fan, I did not know what that meant but I knew I was going to love whatever it was going to be. Aranda is masterful at taking his songs and changing the melody and/or lyrics to keep his songs interesting. His fans are often surprised during his performances, as they do not know what’s to come.

“With such a wide range of influences, it’s not surprising that his sound developed and grew with experimentation." Aranda says, ‘My sound has developed through time by experimenting with synthesizers and more distorted soundscapes’.” -Malvika Padin, Get to Know: Scarypoolparty.

His performance of “10 Years” exuded raw emotion as he belted out “Remember, remember all of the lies you, all of the lies that you say.” He made me feel every bit of pain and sorrow as he did when he wrote the song for a close friend.

Next, Aranda invited his band to play onstage with him. His band members include Maxx Diaz on bass, Travis Couch on guitar and Andy Prado Jr. on drums. He then thanked Hotel Cafe for having him there. “Truly, I feel very grateful to be able to play music during these crazy times.” I noticed right away that they were all sitting on chairs rather than standing as they always do.

The next song, “Millennial Love,” had a different introduction than what his fans were used to. It sounded like a tropical rainforest as there were many different layers of sounds. Once the bass started, it almost felt like a techno/dance version; something you would hear in a nightclub. Instantly, I was surprised by the melody as this is something completely different than I have ever heard. He has already played 2 different versions of this song before; on both his album, Exit Form, and his acoustic guitar version that he performed on American Idol as well as many of his previous live streams.

“Tonight” began with Diaz plucking his bass and Prado beating his drums. When Aranda went into the chorus, there was a jazzy vibe added to the song with piano. Again, this version was completely different than what his fans are used to.

Aranda then said he and his band will play the song “10 Years” again. Instantly, I knew it was going to be different than anything I’ve ever heard before. The intro had sort of a beatnik/funk sound to it, possibly drawing inspiration from music in the late 60’s early 70’s. The different rhythms and melody of the song reminded me of bebop and cool jazz with a rhythmic feel. I thought it was fitting that Diaz dressed the part that night with his beret and necklace.

The next song, “Return2Sender” is one that was released on his EP, Doom Hologram. This song was certainly experimental as it also had a faster tempo and beats. We have heard the acoustic versions during his Outside Lands performance as well as at both The Wiltern and The Roxy. I could really hear Prado playing heavily on the drums here. The second half of the song was all instrumental with Aranda on the piano and his band playing.

“We’re experimenting...doing some crazy stuff,” Aranda added between songs.

Aranda began the song, “Fake Smiles” on the piano which he has never done before. He continued playing it throughout the song. Once the band added the sounds of their instruments, I began to hear the familiar melody of the song. This version of the song is very light, yet the end of the song had the heaving industrial sounds that are heard on Doom Hologram. The piano solo that Aranda played at the end of the song was simply beautiful. I certainly heard the classical influence that Aranda very often puts in many of his songs.

The last song, “Cholo Love” made me want to stand up and dance, which many of his fans have done during his live performances. This song never ceases to amaze me as it shows his intricate piano skills such as his perfected arpeggios. It always impresses the audience as much as it impressed the judges on American Idol when he played the song perfectly during his audition.

Going into this performance, I was unsure of what “soft acoustic” meant. I had a hunch that perhaps it was going to be mostly Aranda with his piano and guitar singing with slower beats/tempo from his band. I knew this was going to be amazing because he has never put out a “soft acoustic” performance. Leave it to Aranda to add some new twists to his already radio-ready songs. Little did I know that his songs would be completely different from what we have heard from him in his live streams, concerts, and albums. When he stated that he and his band were experimenting, boy was he spot-on.

I have to be honest and say that I wasn’t expecting Aranda to completely change the songs to the extent that he did in “Millennial Love,” “Tonight,” “10 Years,” “Return2Sender” and “Fake Smiles.” When he started with the unfamiliar tune of Millennial Love, I remember saying to myself, “What in the world is happening??? Alejandro, this is crazy!” But then I started thinking of Aranda’s genius behind these changes. He is an artist who can take his own songs, change the melodies, and make them sound just as good as the originals. We’ve seen it with songs such as “Millennial Love” and “Cholo Love” in which each song has multiple versions, both of which include his genre-blending sounds. Aranda is a master of doing that.

“Whether it's through his Instagram clips soundtracked by epic piano runs over break-beat drum pattern or via acoustic jams showcasing his soulful voice and soothing textures, Alejandro doesn’t hold back musically or stay in one lane. -Hits Daily Double: Rumor Mill, Michael Dominguez

Aranda’s music often takes listeners on an emotional journey and this performance proved that. Every note he makes evokes a certain feeling, whether it’s happiness, sadness, anger, frustration, love, hope, etc. You really do hear his story in every note and in every song. His creativity, versatility, and his vast knowledge of music puts him on a whole new level as an artist and a musician. He has perfected his craft of being able to express himself through his music, thus his listeners are able to relate and connect to it so well.

It’s incredible that while Aranda experiments with his current songs by adding new beats and sounds to them, he is also writing new music as well. It’s rare that we find artists who sings, writes, creates, arranges, produces, and composes his own music at such a high level of musicality and is as humble as he is. Aranda never forgets to mention how thankful he is and how grateful he is for the opportunities that have been presented to him to play his music at various venues during the pandemic. He manages to still get his music out during a time when theaters and concert halls are closed. I believe he takes the phrase, “The world is your oyster” to heart. Aranda is a hard worker, perseveres, and often thinks outside the box. He takes every opportunity that comes to him. To me, he encapsulates everything that a true artist should be and much more.