Patrick Wolf has just premiered his new video for the forthcoming single ‘Together’.
Deep SynthPop and classy visuals ahoy! Oh, and foxes.
‘Together’ is taken from the album ‘Lupercalia’.
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Category SynthPop
Goin’ Old School: Robert Marlow – The Face Of Dorian Gray
Original Basildon SynthPop gangster Robert Marlow’s ‘The Face Of Dorian Gray’ from 1983.
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Erasure reMixed by Starshapes
Erasure have just released the second single from their current, Frankmusik produced, ElectroPop masterpiece, ‘Tomorrow’s World’, ‘Be With You’.
Included in the reMix packager is this take on the track from London Indie-Pop trio Starshapes who turn in a sweeping five minutes of eclectic SynthPop. With a bit of a New Order flavour mixed in with modern a Indie production sound the reMix stands out on the single and makes Starshapes stand out as an act to keep an eye on.
♫ Erasure – Be With You (Starshapes reMix)
The ‘Be With You’ single is out now.
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Claps début album
Recalling early ‘80’s experimentation of The Futurists, Claps are a three peice Minimal Synth outfit from Minneapolis and have just released their début album ‘Wreck’.
Robotic beats and droning vintage synth sounds provide a cold and mysterious backing that both supports and juxtaposes catchy lead lines and heartfelt vocals throughout the nine tracks. The early Mute Records-esque rhythms and moody synthesizer tones may conjure thoughts of dark, experimental music, but it would be hard to actually call Claps ‘dark’, melancholy yes, but their is a strain of optimism shooting through their tracks and the otherworldly melodies and soft, imitate voice are far to Pop to really be called dark. If fact, at times ‘Wreck’ veers into ‘Speak & Spell’ era Depeche Mode fun territory and could quite easily be bopped to on a 1982 dancefloor. With the release of this record Claps have introduced a sprinkling of bass guitar into their analog synth set-up giving many of the tracks a slight Joy Division flavour, musically, on the tracks it’s introduced. Overall, if you love early ‘80’s SynthPop then this album is for you, it’s like Minimal Synth without the pretension.
♫ Claps – Across the Floor
♫ Claps – House
Clap’s ‘Wreck’ is released this week.
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Space March’s ‘Monumental’
‘Monumental’ is the third album from Australian Modern SynthPop artist Space March.
The record is a collection of twelve tracks of melodic and lilting electronic Pop tracks that have a definite emphasis on hooks. There is a pure Pop sensibility at work on much here, especially the likes of the title track where synths, guitar and bouncy vocals work in tandem. That’s not to say, though, that most of the album isn’t pretty dancefloor oriented. From the pumping Italo Disco of ‘Get What You Deserve’ to the grandiose soundtrack dance epic of ‘Eye For An Eye’, Space march’s combination of machine beats and synths with a Sci-Fi twist with organic instrumentation and vocals with a hint of drama makes for quite a rousing experience and a SynthPop album that rings with a sense of narrative. Now, long-time readers will know how I feel about the so-called Modern SynthPop scene, and there is a strong strain of Modern SynthPop in this record’s DNA. What sets it apart, though, is the production. Everything is clean and sits together well in the mix, there’s not a hint of the amateurish, bedroom production (with no idea how to produce drums) that plagues the majority of Modern SynthPop, whether that has anything to do with input from Erasure/Depeche Mode/A-Ha/Tricky collaborator Mark Saunders in the mixing department I’m not sure, but whatever the reason Space march have made a Modern SynthPop record that is head and shoulders above it’s contemporaries.
♫ Space March – American Girl
♫ Space March – Get What You Deserve
♫ Space March (Feat. Electra-City) – Eye For An Eye
‘Monumental’ is our now.
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Goin’ Old School: Mummy Calls – Beauty Has Her Way
Mummy Calls‘ ‘Beauty Has Her Way’ from 1986. It was in The Lost Boys don’t you know!
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Strangers’ ‘Promises’ video (& Curxes reMix)
We featured Strangers new EP a couple of weeks ago, now we can update with some visuals in the form of the new video for the EP’s lead track, ‘Promises’.
It’s just the kind of stylish I would expect from these guys.
Another act we featured this month is Curxes, who add their industrial influenced moody ElectroPop flavour to the track in their reMix.
♫ Strangers (Feat. Lara Smiles) – Promises (Curxes reMix)
Strangers’ ‘EP’3’ is out 28th November.
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Violet Tremors’ début album
Hold on to your soul, the first ladies of Minimal Synth, Violet Tremors, are about to drop their début album, the awesomely titled ‘Time Is The Traitor’.
The opening track ‘Between Us’ is well chosen, atmospheric and harsh, the track taken no prisoners and utilises vocal processing in a way that, like much of VT’s tracks, makes me think of early Cabaret Voltaire. The combination of Sparse beats, early EBM and Daniel Miller style synth work and haunting pads with vocals that are not quite human sets the listen up well for the rest of the album. Jessica White & Lorene Simpson do a good job of authentically recreating the early days of the Futurists and the sonic experimentation that cantered around Sheffield and Mute Records. The record swings, at times, from harsh and aggressive, as with the Industrial ‘Concentrate’ to the ice cold machine beats of the likes of ‘Caution’ to almost warm, enveloping tracks like ‘Time Dissolver’. Throughout, though, the girls display a keen ear for both melody and texture, and a production skill that suites their sound perfectly. What’s surprising though, is that it’s not all doom and gloom. That is to say that although the record is as fine an example of Minimal Synth as you could ever care for, there is little of the irritating pretension so often heaped onto Minimal Synth records, there’s actually a lot that would kill on any New Romantic dancefloor. I guess what I’m saying is that there is just as much ‘80’s in this album as there is Minimal Synth, and Violet Tremors passion for their sound and their influences shines through.
♫ Violet Tremors – Caution
♫ Violet Tremors – Violet Trance
♫ Violet Tremors – Future Love
‘Time Is The Traitor’ is released 1st December.
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Curxes
Brighton based duo Curxes are bringing a little ‘Construction Time Again’ Depeche Mode back to SynthPop.
This twosome’s music may, at first glance, seem to be lurking with the dark Pop side of things, the occasional wall of sound and melancholy give you that impression, but on further listening there is actually more uplifting about their sound than not. Roberta’s powerful post-punk vocals are easily strong enough to carry songs soaring, not that the songs need to be carried, musically a combination of Depeche Mode’s early industrial experimentations, Japan’s enveloping bass, and just occasionally, Pet Shop Boys early flirtations with Disco. With both a dark grin and the purest of Pop sensibilities, Curxes’ songs are immediately involving, drawing you in on the first listen and offering more with repeated plays.
♫ Curxes – The Constructor
♫ Curxes – Creatures
♫ Curxes – Once Upon A Time
Curxes are hitting Club Fandango @ The Bull & Gate, Kentish Town, London on 30th Nov. Definitely worth is if you’re in the area.
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Goin’ Old School: Furniture – Brilliant Mind
Sombre SynthPop today from Furniture with 1986’s ‘Brilliant Mind’.
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electronic rumors 