Scene Noir (Photo credit: artist’s Facebook page)
From Canada to Italy with a stop-over in England, Getintothis’ Mike Stanton has a trio exciting new releases for us.
Canadian coldwave experimentalists Scene Noir have been creating dark and haunting soundscapes for several years now, evoking the stark, monochrome vistas of the late 70’s post-punk era.
Just as Joy Division reflected the bleak ruinscapes of post-industrial Manchester, Scene Noir‘s sound reflects the urban industrial landscapes of Montreal. Their sound is as wide and sweeping as the Laurentian Mountains, vast in scale, dense and textured creating an immersive ambience.
Andrew Velvet (vocals/guitar/synth) and Dave Brennan (guitar/bass/vocals) have just released the title track from their hugely atmospheric album From Dreams to Memories. This is lo-fi that goes beyond spectral dreamscapes and instead bores into the corridor of subconscious, extinguishing lights and folding in blankets of darkness. From the minimal bass, mournful electronic swirls to Andrew Velvet‘s plaintive Ian Curtis-like vocals, From Dreams To Memories is a meditative piece gently lulling the listener into an hallucinatory calm.
Scene Noir encompass the soft abstraction of hissing electronics, chilly desolation and eerie balladry creating songs that are both robotic and emotive. Throughout From Dreams to Memories Scene Noir have captured a dead-of-night eeriness that grows and evolves with each listen, it is a work of the purest and darkest poetic beauty.
From Dreams to Memories is out now on via Cold Model Records.
More sounds from the other side? Get onto our Unknown Pleasures archive here
The Golden Age of TV (photo credit: artist’s Facebook page)
Leeds art-rock 5-piece The Golden Age of TV make their first move of 2018, unveiling the smart and addictive Beast, a rhythmic stomper, destined for the luminous dancefloors of indie-discos of the future.
Whip-smart drums lock in with gloriously fuzzed out glam bass, disconcertingly swirling guitars bounce around your ears whilst vocalist Bea Fletcher sweetly delivers her personal tale of childhood anxiety:
‘It’s telling a story from my childhood, during that cross-over period when I had to be more independent. It was little things; facing my fear of the dark or going to the toilet on my own without my mum standing outside the door. The change and stress manifested into dreaming and imagining a monster coming after me. I’d see it everywhere I went. It sounds a bit trippy. But I guess growing up is?‘
Beast is out now.
Phantoms vs Fire
PHANTOMS vs FIRE is the solo project of Italy-based Brazilian multi-disciplinary artist Thiago C. Desant. Both a composer and graphic artist, Desant focuses on melodies that incorporate traditional musical instruments, synthesizers and orchestral arrangements.
Taken from the forthcoming album Swim (Deeper), title track Swim perfectly encapsulates his ethos of wide, sweeping orchestrations and beautiful hyper-realised melodies. Right from the outset with the pizzicato strings to the horizon-kissing synths, Swim envelopes the listener in a cloak of warm and lilting euphony. Nicely swinging between deep synths and palmy drums, Swim uses complex rhythmic devices with lush orchestral parts to create an ambience of tranquil introspection.
Swim Deeper is released on January 26 through Hypersoma Records.
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