Category: Reviews (Page 17 of 199)

KID MOXIE & NINA Devotion

11 May 2023 /

Despite being thousands of miles apart, KID MOXIE & NINA bonded online over ‘Blade Runner’, ‘Twin Peaks’ and ‘Drive’; the respective musical monikers of Elena Charbila and Nina Boldt, their debut collaborative EP ‘Lust’ released on Italians Do It Better was a sexy and sultry concoction that explored themes of erotica with a dark yet playful demeanour.

While ‘Electric Kiss’ was the carefree ride that presented the light on the EP, ‘Devotion’ represented the darkness and something altogether more sinister. In a new mini-movie for the latter filmed in Los Angeles and directed by Joe Rubenstein whose credits also include the saucy visual presentation for the KID MOXIE single ‘Shine’, the mini-movie sees the infamous DURAN DURAN video ‘The Chauffeur’ meeting ‘Blade Runner’ within an array of vivid colours

With bendy synth sounds provided by producer Hristos Lainas and driving metaphors pointing to forbidden liaisons, in a joint KID MOXIE & NINA interview with ELECTRICITYCLUB.CO.UK, Nina Boldt said of ‘Devotion’: “I really love that spoken word mixing with the sensual vocals and it’s a bit more playful and there’s anticipation there…”

In a car chase backstory with a twist providing a sexy mystique, Elena Charbila admitted about the video’s inspiration: “It’s probably the most ‘Blade Runner’ influenced because of the location amongst the tall buildings. There’s a chase and as our most dangerous sounding song, it has some Theremin in there as well. There’s a universe where ‘Devotion’ is the track of being chased, but whoever is chasing us doesn’t want to do anything bad to us!”

‘Devotion’ is from the ‘Lust’ EP released by Italians Do It Better, listen via https://idib.ffm.to/lustep

http://www.facebook.com/kidmoxie

https://twitter.com/KIDMOXIEMUSIC

https://www.instagram.com/kid.moxie/

https://www.iloveninamusic.com/

https://www.facebook.com/iloveninamusic

https://twitter.com/iloveninamusic

https://www.instagram.com/ninasounduk/

https://open.spotify.com/album/5COlcln5e8yUqKKPInZ5Rp

Text by Chi Ming Lai
Photo by George Tripodakis
11th May 2023

ZANIAS Chrysalis

1 May 2023 /

Following one of the most traumatic periods of her life which also led to one of her most artistically prolific, Alison Lewis is back as her solo alter-ego Zoe Zanias to present ‘Chrysalis’.

As the title of the album suggests, ‘Chrysalis’ is a rebirth. Her emotional catharsis to music is ever present, but there is also an emergent avant-pop sensibility providing hope, despite the dark times that the world finds itself with a new Cold War and environmental catastrophe looming.

Alison Lewis made her name as a member of the acclaimed minimal synth duo LINEA ASPERA with Ryan Ambridge. While they delivered an excellent comeback album ‘LPII’ in 2020, her focus has since been as ZANIAS with the most recent album ‘Unearthed’ emerging in 2021.

‘Chrysalis’ was seeded by a number of unfortunate events in Lewis’ life but using her own music as therapy, she has weaved a cocoon of hope from the despair. Song topics include the human condition, burnout, disillusionment, bereavement and the toxicity of capitalism. Written and recorded between her adopted home of Berlin and the rainforest of Queensland in Australia, despite the various foods for thought, this is the possibly the most accessible ZANIAS album yet.

The excellent ‘Simulation’ opens and is a bittersweet ode to Berlin where “This city is a fable, nowhere else to go. This city has enabled us all and it’s breaking my soul”. Despite the introspection as expressed by a hauntingly contralto vocal, the backdrop glistens. Capturing “a broken reality” where “everything’s shattering”, a joyful escapist euphoria counters those feelings.

The swaying avant pop of ‘Metrics’ is beat-centric, ghostly yet danceable with a catchy buzz. Meanwhile if Madonna had more gothic tendencies around her ‘Bedroom Stories’ period, the dark and ethereal ‘Burial’ might have been the end result. Its lush synth strings and voiced-derived layers points towards the “Global Pop” of PRAISE but is much deeper.

With glorious arpeggios and lush synth strings, ‘Lovelife’ is wonderfully trance, bolstered with bass guitar by live bandmate Laura Bailey aka NEU-ROMANCER while an array of pitch-shifted voice samples act as an abstract lead vocal before the actual one kicks in. With ominous tones reminiscent of THE CURE’s ‘A Forest’, ‘Closing’ uses a number of interesting vocal treatments which provide intensity over the snappy rhythmics.

In a departure, ‘Teatree’ features virtual strums and could be considered an eerie ZANIAS folk ballad while also taking a more sedate approach, ‘Departure’ projects a more atmospheric tone with rung textures and a white noise backbone. To close, the ‘Chrysalis’ title song goes for a full acoustic intro before beats and electronics make their presence felt as our heroine emerges from her sheltered state into her next stage of growth.

Evocative and captivating, ‘Chrysalis’ is the best Zoe Zanias long player to date. Alison Lewis remains independent and true to her art while providing a new found immersive immediacy that will help her music reach a wider audience. That balance is no easy feat to achieve but with some new approaches, she has managed it.

‘Chrysalis’ is released by Fleisch as a limited edition black/blue or blue/green vinyl LP, CD + digital release, available direct from https://zanias.bandcamp.com/

https://www.facebook.com/zoe.zanias/

https://twitter.com/Zanias__

https://www.instagram.com/zoe_zanias/

https://www.patreon.com/zanias

Text by Chi Ming Lai
Photos by Hidrico Rubens
1st May 2023

FINLAY SHAKESPEARE Illusion + Memory

26 April 2023 /

A graduate in audio engineering and an independent musical device manufacturer, Finlay Shakespeare founded Future Sound Systems to build modular synthesizer components predominantly for the Eurorack format.

Also a producer of music, Finlay Shakespeare released his first album ‘Domestic Economy’ in 2019 and opened for BLANCMANGE on their ‘Wanderlust’ tour. His second long player ‘Solemnities’ was a more structured progression. Developing on the debut’s complex modular construction and anxious theatrics, it maintained a distinct post-punk anguish that dreamt of wires rather than guitars and was one of the best albums of 2020.

Ultimately, Finlay Shakespeare is an electronic pop fan with a love of KRAFTWERK, THROBBING GRISTLE, THE HUMAN LEAGUE, ASSOCIATES, OMD and JAPAN so with his third album proper ‘Illusion + Memory’, the Bristolian presents his most pop collection of songs yet, continuing the good work showcased on ‘Solemnities’.

Opening with ‘Your Side of the River’, this deep and sombre ballad has hints of the more recent material of BLANCMANGE and THE HUMAN LEAGUE’s early work, while mechanical and call sign elements of OMD’s ‘Dazzle Ships’ album creep in almost unnoticed before a percussive build and a vocal delivery that is more restrained but no less honest than before.

The anguish of the past returns on ‘Always’ but there are exotic melodies and infectious machine rhythms that groove like a more steadfast take on Peter Gabriel’s ‘Shock The Monkey’. In a change from the scheduled programme, a more lovelorn side is revealed on ‘Theresa’ which features a snappy percussive backbone reminiscent of the late Ryuichi Sakamoto and his early standalone solo single ‘Warhead’.

The more experimental ‘Climb’ hits harder techno territory with anxious vocal stylings but on the album’s longest track, ‘Ici’ surprises with bursts of synthbrass and off-beats though a more structured form unveils itself about a third of the way in with squelchy electronic bass and what sounds like guitars. Meanwhile ‘I Saw You’ is shaped by sort the tight frenetic sequences that characterised much of Finlay Shakespeare’s previous work with his typically feisty vocal delivery.

The glorious album highlight ‘Ready Ready’ is almost Motorik in presence with a wonderfully pulsing drive and gorgeous synth tones as our hero doesn’t refrain from his spirited feelings; if this was by NATION OF LANGUAGE, it would be on the BBC 6 Music ‘A’ list. After all the action, ‘Upcoming’ surprises as a sparse ballad with no drum sounds but the tones, sweeps and buzzes form a haunting soundscape of Vangelis proportions to close an excellent album.

If you have enjoyed Finlay Shakespeare’s music before, you will love ‘Illusion + Memory’. Meanwhile, those who have been crying out and bemoaning that there is no good music anymore, well it’s right here. More varied than his previous albums and even introducing a romantic element to proceedings, Finlay Shakespeare has shown again that he is the real deal with a genuine heart for sonically immersive electronic pop.

‘Illusion + Memory’ released by Alter on 28th April 2023, available in vinyl LP and online formats via https://lnk.to/IllusionMemory

http://finlayshakespeare.com/

https://www.facebook.com/FinShakespeare/

https://twitter.com/FinShakespeare

https://www.instagram.com/finlayshakespeare

https://www.futuresoundsystems.co.uk/

https://alterstock.org

https://open.spotify.com/album/2jZ49Dr0AsyPhkC90sj8Ti

Text by Chi Ming Lai
26th April 2023

THEO SAYERS Tough Guys

4 April 2023 /

Ranging in style from hip-hop to electro, from crooner to rap, from grooves to dancey beats, Theo Sayers always applies witty humour and a playful sense of fun to his streetwise take on life.

‘My Nose Is A Little Runny’ from 2020 was his SLEAFORD MODS styled musical response to the worldwide pandemic, but he finally has new material and an album in the can. The first single released from it is ‘Tough Guys’ which also features the voice of former KNIGHT$ live band member Jasmine Brady.

His debut collaboration with Andy Carter who acts as co-producer, ‘Tough Guys’ takes inspiration musically from SOFT CELL and TEARS FOR FEARS while the amusing promo video has been directed by Tyrus.

Taking a break from finishing his upcoming full-length debut album ‘Ramen For Two’ and preparing for his next ‘Old Dreams For A New Age’ radio show on Resonance EXTRA, Theo Sayers kindly spoke to ELECTRICITYCLUB.CO.UK about the lot of a tough guy…

What is ‘Tough Guys’ about, is the narrative autobiographical?

It’s not autobiographical and I wouldn’t really say there’s a strong narrative. With the song I suppose I wanted to poke fun at traditional ideas of masculinity and toughness, exploring the campiness of that imagery. There’s also subtle political undercurrents, “Fight back at the kingdom” has an air of resistance to it.

Your vocal delivery has been compared to Ian Dury, Jona Lewie, Kate Nash, Mike Skinner and Jason Williamson but who has it actually been most influenced by?

Those are all vocalists I admire and in the video you will, in fact, find me in the kitchen at a party… Haha! Some other vocalists that have strongly influenced me over the years are Terry Hall, Robert Smith and Damon Albarn.

Musically and technically, how was ‘Tough Guys’ seeded?

It actually began a long time ago (sometime in 2018) as a collaboration between me and my friend Andy Carter (who performs under the name COIN OP and appears in the video as the disapproving “tough guy”). We’d recently met and were bonding over a shared love of 80s music and cinema, we were also watching ‘Cobra Kai’ together so perhaps that had an influence.

We created the backing track together, I wrote my vocal part and then invited my friend Jasmine Brady (who previously performed with KNIGHT$) to sing on it. She came up with the lovely vocal hook you hear throughout and the song became the first of our many collaborations. Although it’s long been a staple of our live sets, I haven’t released it until now as admittedly I’m a bit of a perfectionist.

The video was filmed with a camera phone strapped to a waistband mount but you must have had some quite interesting and funny moments wearing it, particularly during the house party scene?

We used an actual camera, not a camera phone! There were many funny moments. Perhaps the unsung hero of the shoot is Rhys Votano (who directed my previous videos and also cameoed as the sleazy guy in ‘My Nose Is A Little Runny’), during the handlebar scenes he was actually underneath me, lifting me up. Later on at the party, he made a lot of fuss about being stuck with that role. Poor Rhys hahaha…

Are you sending up Vlogger/Influencer culture? Have people become too self-obsessed and narcissistic in their attempts to set up “a brand”?

You know, I hadn’t actually thought of that. I do think there’s a very toxic side to that culture though, especially the toxic male influencers like Andrew Tate. They deserve all the ridicule they can get!

How is your debut album ‘Ramen For Two’ coming along?

Very well! There’s just a few more tracks that require mastering so an actual release date will be set in stone soon. There will also be more videos!

‘Tough Guys’ b/w ‘Tell Me I’m A Super Lover’ is available via the usual digital platforms including Bandcamp at https://theosayers.bandcamp.com/

https://www.facebook.com/theosayersmusic/

https://twitter.com/theosayers

https://www.instagram.com/theosayers/

https://linktr.ee/theosayers

https://open.spotify.com/artist/0iaqiCh8ozGLtdBjR7BdZJ

Text by Chi Ming Lai
4th April 2023

GEISTE Ashes EP

31 March 2023 /

Having opened for EMIKA at the Berlin-based producer’s most recent London gig at the end of 2019, it is fitting that GEISTE has her new EP ‘Ashes’ released on Emika Records.

“She never let go of the little child within her” her new label boss Ema Jolly aka EMIKA said, “telling the story through her music of how we as children of this planet, destroy our Earth but never let go of hope in order to start again and learn to live in harmony with ourselves”. Reviewing her 2020 debut EP ‘Utopia’, ELECTRICITYCLUB.CO.UK had suggested that if JRR Tolkien had manufactured pop stars, he would have come up with GEISTE.

Born in the south of France, GEISTE is the nom de théâtre of Marie Chabrelie and her voice has drawn comparisons with Cat Power and Lorde. Seeded during the pandemic, the isolation while observing world events brought inspiration through upset and rage.

On board ‘Ashes’ to develop the fragile but fiery sound of GEISTE is Finnish co-producer Karri Mikkonen, noted for his work in modern South East Asian pop. With a sparse backdrop comprising of an ivory motif, the title song sets the scene with an emotive chill, washes of virtual strings and haunting layers of voices. ‘Immortal’ allows for some artful playfulness in its intro before the song moves into the epic Nordic territory reminiscent of Susanne Sundfør.

A key number is ‘Golden’ which exudes the confident artist who has developed since ‘Utopia’; it features a superb vocal delivery on top of an expansive filmic arrangement, highlighting the sonic leap nurtured in collaboration with Karri Mikkonen. Playing with more organic textures, ‘Until I Come Back’ is heartfelt, but punctuated with alternating rhythmic passages, ‘22 59’ veers into prog rock with an unexpected guitar solo.

Closing proceedings, the angelic ‘Wake Me Up’ is neo-acapella with some gorgeous harmonies but halfway through comes a steady percussive build towards a widescreen crescendo.

Mixing lush electronically constructed soundscapes, appropriate beat mantras and powerful poetic prose, ‘Ashes’ is as bewitching as past GEISTE works. But thanks to the input of Karri Mikkonen and Ema Jolly, a new maturity has emerged that has allowed Marie Chabrelie to express herself in an even more direct honest fashion while still retaining her fantasial mystery.

‘Ashes’ is released as a digital EP via Emika Records

https://www.geistemusic.com/

https://www.facebook.com/geistefromashes/

https://twitter.com/geistefromashes

https://www.instagram.com/geistefromashes/

https://open.spotify.com/album/13SzMuLSScomFTfGvPP4th

Text by Chi Ming Lai
31st March 2023

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