Category: Indie Synth Pop

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: Mike Rogers Shares Anthemic and Urgent “Live Out Loud”

Amsterdam-based indie dance trio Mike Rogers features three of the country’s rising electronic music artists: Mike Mago, TWR72, and Kita Menari mastermind Micha de Jonge. The project can trace its origins two decades ago, back to the early 2000s: Mago and TWR72 met while DJ’ing Dutch underground electro parties. That raw and energetic scene saw the pair playing a mix of electro pop, French touch and French house, fidget and techno.

Naturally, as the years passed by, the pair individually developed their own unique sound and approaches — but they realized that they had long held a similar dream: to start a live act inspired by the bands they grew up with, as well as Miike Snow, Foals, Editors, Van She, and Goose among others. Mago and TWR72 started Mike Rogers as a way to challenge themselves creative and professionally, while further developing as producers and DJs. The duo then recruited Kita Menari’s Micha de Jonge, who contributes his big, plaintive vocals to their hook-driven, rousingly anthemic, crowd-pleasing sound.

The trio’s full-debut Live Out Loud is slated for release this year. The album reportedly sees the Dutch trio crafting material that’s a slick mix of analog, digital and retro sounds with a decidedly modern feel. During the album’s creative process, they all agreed that it felt like second nature for them to be bold and make big musical gestures without sensationalism. Interestingly, that creative approach wound up informing the album’s central thematic concern. “Why do people always have to choose between black and white?” The Dutch electro pop trio asks. “You don’t have to choose between extremes. You can be modest in your opinions but still live out loud!”

“Go out there and live in the moment. You don’t always have to choose sides. The music represents this throughout,” the trio add. “All styles from opposite sides are mixed to create a perfect balance in the middle or leave the listener with an ambiguous feeling. 

Last year, I wrote about album single “Can’t Stop,” an anthemic bit of post punk/dance punk built around angular guitar tack, de Jonge’s achingly plaintive delivery and a motorik groove paired with euphoria-inducing hooks. While sounding a bit like Radio 4, Interpol, and Editors, “Can’t Stop” as the trio explains is about a lonely man, who looks back at his life: As a young man, he tries to do everything right, but always feels as though he is failing since people don’t seem to understand him. Battling a personal struggle with his past, the lonely man protests against this feeling, with the hopes that he can get rid of those negative thoughts. 

Written in 2021, the trio explain, “In our minds that year was a year where we had a lot of questions. Like, what is freedom, what should one fight for, how should one fight for something, how do we move forward as a society and also, how do we judge our past behaviour. We believe questions are the biggest inspirator. We’re trying to ask questions more than to send a message, although that’s also a bit of a vision we want to share.” 

Live Out Loud‘s latest single, album title track “Live Out Loud” is a rousingly anthemic bop built around glistening synths, shimmering guitar lines that bring A Flock of Seagulls to mind and de Jonge’s earnest delivery paired with the Dutch trio’s unerring knack for enormous, rousingly anthemic, shout-along worthy choruses.

“The song was written during a period where, we felt, far sides of the political spectrum were very present,” Mike Rogers explains. “We wanted to motivate the group known as the silent middle to stand up for their (slightly more nuanced) thoughts/visions/ideas. We also wanted to seek overlap in standing up for your idea and being outgoing whilst losing oneself in the moment. We all have to live out loud more. If you don’t live life fully, you don’t live life at all. You have to live it out loud to make sense of it, because otherwise ‘you’ll never know what it’s all about.’ And if you know what it’s all about, you have to fight for it.” 

The trio adds “We encourage to ask questions out loud. To share your uncertainties out loud. To say, I don’t know, yet I care. To forgive out loud. To live out loud.”

Directed by Rens Polman, the accompanying video for “Live Out Loud” is a slick and trippy mix of A.I. that follows a series of characters escaping reality for a digitally processed world. “If you don’t live life fully you don’t live it,” the Dutch trio say. “You have to live it loud to make sense of it, because else ‘you’ll never know what it’s all about’. And if you know what it’s all about you have to fight for it. “‘Live Out Loud’ is about the current situation where social media and A.I. are increasingly taking over our lives. Reality is slowly being lost and we mainly experience happiness in the digital world. As a result of A.I. and social media, reality is becoming increasingly fused. However, we are experiencing it more and more as reality and getting further immersed in it. We are losing control over what it truly means to ‘really’ experience something. The digital world acts as a shot of dopamine. With the music video, we are demonstrating how people are literally being swallowed up by a fantasy world. A world that makes our brains happy. A world where we can experience everything we could possibly want. It is limitless. However, this is contrasted with the fact that we often forget about our own real lives. The life where we can truly experience things.”

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

New Audio: Altarviolet Shares Earnest and Urgent “SOS”

Colorado-based singer/songwriter Greta Hotmer may be best known for stints as the frontperson of The Moxy and Leo Moon, along with collaboration with friends and former bandmates, including Nick Bozzelli, CKY‘s Jess Margera and Carl Pannell. Hotmer’s solo recording project Altarviolet sees her blending the electronic sounds of her youth with organic and analogue-ish bass synths to create material that’s “part nostalgia, part futuristic . . . the kind of music you can dance, cry, and sing your beautiful face off to all at once,” as she puts it.

The Colorado-based artist’s latest single “SOS” is features ayers of glistening synth arpeggios, Hotmer’s achingly plaintive vocals, skittering beats and shout-along worthy hooks and choruses. While sonically bringing Tori Amos and Banks to mind, “SOS” is rooted in lived-in experience — and as a result, it captures a narrator seemingly at the end of her rope. “Most of my songs are born from processing difficult feelings . . . music therapy at its finest. This song reflects a chapter in my life where I felt like I was stuck in a cycle that wouldn’t break no matter how I tried to change the situation or change myself. It is an ode to a time that I am grateful to have found the courage to step away from” Hotmer says.

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

New Audio: Lyfe Indoors Shares Slow-Burning and Woozy “Binary Crime”

Started back in 2014, the bedroom pop project Lyfe Indoors has received attention across both the cognoscenti and the blogosphere for a handful of self-released EPs and singles that see him pairing poetic lyricism, esoteric and alluring imagery with a synth-driven sound drawing from dream pop, shoegaze and New Wave.

Afer a brief hiatus, the rising bedroom pop producer returns with “Binary Crime,” the first single off a new and upcoming collection of tracks. Built around buzzing bass synths, skittering beats, whirring synth arpeggios paired with the rising bedroom producer’s plaintive, reverb-drenched delivery, “Binary Crime” is a slow-burning and woozily narcotic mix of shoegaze, dream pop and synth pop that’s rooted in pandemic era-related ennui.

“‘Binary Crime’ is a tune I wrote when feeling a bit lost in technology.  Post-covid, it’s a lot easier to be numb to everything online,” Lyfe Indoors explains.”That’s difficult and I wanted to make a song that exemplified that.  The lyrics are up for interpretation but at the end of it, everything is just 1’s and 0’s.”

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

New Audio: The Heroic Enthusiasts Shares Blak Emoji’s Industrial Remix of “Still Life”

The Heroic Enthusiasts — multi-instrumentalist and songwriter Thomas Ferrera and vocalist and multi-instrumentalist James Tabbi — have celebrated careers as solo artists, producers, composers and multi-instrumentalists. The duo bonded over their mutual influences of Brit Pop, New Wave and post-punk. Additionally, their education in computational mathematics and mathematical statistics help to inform work that manages to deftly combine the intellectual and emotional.

Last year was a busy year for the synth pop duo: They released two EPs last year through Meridian/ECR Music Group — Fits and Fashions EP and Crimes and Passions EP. As the duo explains Fits and Fashions “provided and introduction and an opportunity to glimpse who we are as a band: one that pulls from 80’s-based nostalgia and turns into something modern.” The duo’s Thomas Ferrera explains that the first EP is essentially Side 1 of their forthcoming album. Crimes and Passions in contrasts with — and to compliment — the first EP is a collection of five inspired, spontaneous songs meant to take the listener on a journey that convey a multitude of emotions. Crimes and Passions is essentially Side 2 of the album.

“Still Life” appears on Crimes and Passions EP. Featuring glistening synth arpeggios, mathematically precise, propulsive four-on-the-floor and bursts of angular guitar paired with Tabbi’s expressive crooning and razor sharp hooks, “Still Life” manages to sound indebted to Pet Shop Boys, New Order, and Electronic. “The song is an imagining, a metaphor, of those aspects of a still-life painting reflected into a relationship,” The Heroic Enthusiasts’ Tabbi explains in press notes. “Two lovers feeling the lightness and darkness of love, feeling alive, knowing the feelings and emotions will ebb and flow, and sadly, someday end as all of nature does, in death.”

Recently, the duo recruited JOVM mainstay Blak Emoji to remix “Still Life,” that retains the vocal and razor sharp hooks of the original but pairs them with a club friendly, industrial-leaning production featuring enormous, tweeter and woofer rattling beats and buzzing synths. “’Still Life’ was my favorite song from the Crimes and Passions EP,” Blak Emoji says in press notes. “Soon as I heard it I felt I could contribute a bit more of an industrial pop edge sonically with respect to the original. I kept visualizing how it would sound on the dance floor of a goth club. Had a total blast with it and the Heroic guys are great people, period.”

“’Still Life’ was one of our first compositions for this two-EP collection,” The Heroic Enthusiasts’ Thomas Ferrara explains. “Its lyrical content can be interpreted in several ways, and melodically and sonically the same holds true. Blak Emoji translated the song and original track into his own voice that strikes a chord with both James and me. He may have awoken a sleeping giant. Thank you Blak Emoji.”

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

New Audio: Don’t Get Lemon Shares Groovy, 80s-Inspired “Blow-up”

Currently split between Austin and Houston, Don’t Get Lemon — Austin Curtis (vocals), Bryan Walters (bass, percussion) and Nick Ross (synth, guitar, drum programming) — is a dance pop outfit with a glam-leaning, synth-driven sound that draws from 70s Berlin and 80s Manchester.

Deriving its title from Michelangelo Antonioni’s swinging 1966 motion picture Blow-Up, the Texan trio’s latest single “Blow-Up” is a decidedly 80s Madchester/Manchester-inspired bop built around glistening synths arpeggios, Curtis’ ironically detached delivery, a motorik-like groove, angular guitar attack, and bursts of polyrhythm featuring bongo and electronic drums paired with bombastic hooks. The trio explain that the song, which features lyrics pierced together, borrowing from William S. Burroughs’ famed cut-up poetry technique and imagery inspired by David Lynch’s Blue Velvet is a “glimpse into the unseen dark.”

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: Thunder Bae Shares Brooding and Atmospheric “Numb”

Thunder Bae is an emerging and rapidly rising singer/songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, producer and self-described “analog girl in a digital world.” Influenced by Pink Floyd, Sade, Kurt Cobain, Dire Straits, and Elton John, the rising artist aims to create a difficult to pigeonhole sound.

Her latest single, “Numb” is a slow-burning and brooding track built around atmospheric synths, a brief Dark Side of the Moon nod, a reverb-soaked beats paired with the rising pop artist’s sultry pop belter delivery and soaring, shout-along worthy hooks and choruses. Sonically, “Numb” reminds me quite a bit of JOVM mainstay ACES and others, while being rooted in lived-in, personal, yet deeply universal experience that’s lyrically captured with a disarming precision and honesty.

Written when the rising pop artist was going through a period of feeling numb, she intended to capture the essence of the experience. As Thunder Bae explains, the song carries a message “that numbness is not necessarily a good or bad feeling, since it deprives one of emotions. It’s a complex emotional state that deserves understanding and recognition.” She believes that listeners will find solace in the song, because it speaks directly to — and about — deep-seated emotions that they may be experiencing right this moment, while acknowledging that numbness is normal to feel at times. She adds that she hopes the song will empower the listener to emerge stronger from their struggles.

Directed by Agnieszka Oginski, Sönke Schmidt, and Natalie-Isabel Knopps, the accompanying video for “Numb” features the rising artist in the midst of a deep emotional and psychological struggle, helping to ground the song’s theme and lyrics in psychological realism.

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

New Audio: Le Couleur Shares Sultry “Sentiments nouveaux”

Montreal-based trio Le Couleur — Laurence Giroux-Do (vocals). Patrick Gosselin (bass) and Steven Chouinard (drums) – – quick rose to prominence with a glittery electro pop sound seemingly influenced by Studio 54 with their earliest releases — 2013’s Voyage Love EP, 2015’s Dolce Désir and their critically applauded full-length debut, 2016’s P.O.P.

After sharing a stage with Giorgio Moroder, Moroder gave them some pertinent advice, which informed a decided change of approach as heard on the trio’s sophomore album, 2020’s Concorde, an album informed by vintage influences including 70s eroticism, psychedelia, disco, yéyé and French chanson among others.

The rising Canadian trio’s latest single “Sentiments nouveaux” is a sleek, slickly produced, languorous bop built around dense layers of glistening and wobbling synth arpeggios, skittering tweeter and woofer rattling thump paired with sultrily delivered vocals in French and English, a buzzing Tame Impala-like guitar solo, and the trio’s unerring knack for razor sharp hooks. Sonically, “Sentiments nouveaux” may arguably be the most 80s synth pop inspired song of their growing catalog, bringing Nu Shooz and others to mind.

“Sentiments nouveaux” is the first taste of a forthcoming album, slated for a fall release. Be on the lookout y’all.

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

New Audio: JOVM Mainstay Sophie Colette Shares Breezy and Upbeat Anthem

Currently based in Richmond, VA, singer/songwriter, keyboardist. indie pop artist and JOVM mainstay Sophie Colette initially moved to New York to pursue fashion design. But she pivoted to music after being scouted at a high school reunion by The Party Faithful‘s bassist. As the story goes, about a month or so later, Colette was contributing vocals, keys and synths for The Party Faithful, playing at venues across town.

During that same period, she met singer/songwriter, musician, and Degraw Sound producer Ben Rice. Colette eventually showed Rice a stack of sketchbooks filled with lyrics and visual palettes. Those sketchbooks eventually spurred her work as a solo artist.

“Tonite” off Colette’s debut EP Strangers and Lovers was featured at Jasmine Chong’s runway presentations to the editors of Vogue, WWD, Elle and others during New York Fashion Week 2017. Selected footage from the Stephen Dirkes-directed music video for “Get Close” was nominated for Best Creative Concept, Art Direction and Visual Effects at the La Jolla International Fashion Film Festival. She also supported the EP with a European tour with Berlin-based The Crystal Elephant.

Over the past couple of years, Colette has released a handful of singles that have received praise from my colleagues and dear friends at Glamglare, Adam’s World Blog — and of course, this site. Her work has also received airplay on French radio station Déclic Radio 101.1FM.

The JOVM mainstay’s latest single “Don’t Worry” is a breezy and uptempo, hook-driven anthem featuring a mix of live drumming and programmed beats paired with lush, twinkling keys, punchy syncopation and Colette’s achingly vulnerable delivery and lyrics. While rooted in the Richmond-based artist’s heart-worn-on-sleeve earnestness, “Don’t Worry” possesses an easy-going swagger. The song’s narrator is clearly feeling herself. But along with that confidence, the narrator is expressing her willingness to fight for the love they deserve — both from others and herself.

“I wanted to write a song I could dance to, to shake off negativity, and get myself out of bed to make that cup of coffee in the morning and get dressed,” Colette explains. “I needed it as my own antidote to loneliness and self doubt. It became a reminder that I could be my own cheerleader and push myself out of a funk.”

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: Ninety’s Story Shares Sultry “Bad” feat. Ferdi and Béssau

With the release of their debut EP, 2017’s Kikuyu, which featured EP title track and debut single “Kikuyu” Nice-based indie act Ninety’s Story — childhood friends Guillaume Adamo and Florian Deyz — quickly established a sound and approach that’s fittingly inspired by Phoenix, Daft Punk and Air, and fittingly the French Riviera.

The duo, along with their backing band have opened for Archive, Morcheeba, Pale Waves and Puggy and a list of others. Adding to a growing profile, the duo wrote the music for a Citroën C4 Aircross ad campaign that aired in China —  with the band representing the company at the Paris and Hangzhou Motor Shows. 

Since then, the Nice-based JOVM mainstays have been busy releasing a handful of singles over the past couple of years, including:

  • The breezy and anthemic “APO”

  • The sultry, R&B-inflluenced “Home.” 

And a a Groover Obsessions‘ Les Capsules sessions at La Marbrerie that featured two songs:

  • “Heaven,” a slow-burning and brooding song that reminds me a bit of JOVM mainstays Ten Fe and Palace Winter: a deliberately crafted, anthemic song centered around expressive and bluesy guitars, shimmering synths, plaintive vocals and lived-in lyrics. 

  • “Ride,” a strutting bit of pop rock that — to my ears, at least — brings a slick synthesis of Steely Dan and Radiohead to mind. 

The French JOVM mainstays begin their 2023 with their latest single “Bad,” feat. Ferdi and Béesau which sees the band embracing a slickly produced synth pop-driven sound that seems equally inspired by The Weeknd, My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy-era Kanye West, and 80s sophistipop — thanks in part to a soulful horn solo. Thematically, the song touches upon regret, longing and taking a desperate and much-needed leap of faith to keep a relationship on the verge going.

The song will appear on the duo’s forthcoming album, Tears and Laughter, which is slated for a Spring release.

Directed By Victor Rahman, the cinematically song visual for “Bad” starts with a woman walking around the shore before seeing her expressive dance along a windswept shore. The rest of the video is told through a series of flashbacks from a drunken night of revelry — and of regret.

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

New Audio: Polar Mind Shares 80s Synth Pop-Inspired “Am I The One”

Polar Mind is a mysterious and enigmatic Swiss-born and-based singer/songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and producer, who can trace the origins of his musical project back to three years ago: The Swiss-born and-based artist was a scientist, who was part of a scientific expedition to Antarctica. Assigned to the Palaoa Research Station, where sounds from the sea are recorded and tracked, the mysterious Swiss artist lived as a hermit.

During his time at Palaoa Research Station, the Swiss artist listened to whales breathing and marveled when ice floes collide — around the clock. He became a local celebrity among the 4,000 scientists stationed in Antarctica when he made a surprising scientific discovery: He detected a pulsating bubble about a kilometer below the surface that emitted an unusual signal. An initial sample of the bubble reveals that it consists of ammonia, methane and hydrogen — all components that played an important role in Earth’s early days. In the gas mixture, small lightning bolts seem to be discharging, which allows the bubble wall to emit signal waves that appear to communicate with a yet to identifiable force.

According to the Swiss artist, teams of experts from different parts of the world are trying to recover the strange discovery because they suspect he stumbled upon something major. Others believe that his discovery is suspicious.

He becomes the pawn of various different interests and returns home to Switzerland, where he focuses on music full-time. “Am I The One,” Polar Mind’s remarkably cinematic debut single features glistening synth arpeggios, gated reverb drums and a sinuous paired with plaintive vocals and enormous hooks. While sounding indebted to 80s synth pop and New Wave the song is rooted in slick modern production, deliberate craftsmanship and earnest performance.

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

New Audio: Stockholm’s Me & Melancholy Shares a Brooding Banger

Peter Ehrling is a Stockholm-based electronic music producer, musician and creative mastermind behind the solo electro pop recording project Me & Melancholy. Inspired by Depeche Mode, New Order, Camouflage, and Swedish synth acts like The Mobile Homes and Elegant Machinery, Me & Melancholy focuses on melancholy synth pop that blends retro and contemporary sounds to create a nostalgically upbeat yet introspective vibe.

Since starting the project last year, Ehrling has been rather prolific: he has released three singles, an EP and his full-length debut, You and me, Melancholy.

“I let you down (Dark Version)” is a brooding bit of goth-meets-industrial synth pop centered around tweeter and woofer rattling thump, glistening synths and guitar paired with Ehrling’s plaintive delivery and enormous hooks. Sonically, the song brings Violator-era Depeche Mode while rooted in self-flagellation, disgust, despair and heartache.

Ehrling explains that “I let you down (Dark Version)” is a complete and thorough remake of the the original, which appears on You and me, Melancholy.

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

Mysterious, Danish electronic music artist Ani Even is a self-described “electro cave/rave/chantcore artist.” Late late year, Even shared “The Nearest Star,” a slow-burning yet euphoric ode to the Winter Solstice, centered around sampled layers of Benedictine monk-like chants, indigenous-like throat singing, Even’s plaintive vocals, thumping club friendly beats and glistening synths. The end result is a mind-bending mix of rave music, drum ‘n’ bass, shoegaze and spiritual music — that sounds as though it should be played at Stonehenge. 

Even’s latest single “Dogstar” derives its title from Sirius, a star in the constellation Canis Major, seen in the Southern Celestial Hemisphere. Sirius, also known as the Dog Star is the brightest star in the night sky. For those in Egypt, the rising of Sirius roughly correlates to the cyclical flooding of the Nile River, while the ancient Greeks, it marked “the dog days of summer,” the hottest part of the summer. For the Polynesians, who were mostly located in the Southern hemisphere, the rising of Sirius marked the beginning of winter — and the star was used as a guiding reference while navigating the Pacific Ocean.

Centered around layers of glistening synth arpeggios, a relentless motorik groove, skittering beats paired with heavily vocodered and distorted vocals and euphoric hooks, “Dogstar” manages to sound as though it pulls from elements of Giorgio Moroder-era disco, Kraftwerk-era techno, and Little Boots-era electro pop and meshes them into a seamless, crowd-pleasing fashion.

The Danish artist describes the song as “a journey from the melancholic to the joyous. The Sirius star (Canis Major) is sometimes reffered [sic] to as the Dogstar [sic]. A guiding light on the night’s sky, which helps you navigate through the darkness towards a brighter horizon. Follow your heart and you will find your destination.”

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

New Audio: Liela Moss Shares Incisive and Propulsive “Come and Find Me”

Over the course of her 20 year music career, British singer/songwriter and musician Liela Moss has been very busy: She’s a co-founder of The Duke Spirit, whose output has ranged from brawling alt-rock and cinematic ventures. Moss with her The Duke Spirit bandmate Toby Butler are members of synth-rock project Roman Remains. And she has collaborated with the likes of UNKLE, Nick Cave, Giorgio Moroder, The Heritage Orchestra, and Lost Horizons among a list of others. Moss has also served as a muse for iconic designers Alexander McQueen and Philip Lim.

With the release of 2018’s My Name Is Safe In Your Mouth, Moss stepped out into the spotlight as a solo artist. 2020’s Who the Power was a dramatic, synth-driven effort. Moss’ third album Internal Working Model is slated for a January 13, 2023 release through Bella Union. Internal Working Model reportedly bristles with frustration at our disconnected culture but also — crucial — burns with a desire to reconnect: “I’m trying to find a way to plug myself into a new community,” says Liela Moss of her third solo album. “I am imagining a tribe, navigating away from our very centralized culture, dismantling it and revising the way I think things work.” “We see the beneficiaries of the status quo suppress realness and wellbeing by selling you a banal alternative that upholds their agenda. I want to add to the firepower to burn that old house down,” Moss explains.

Internal Working Model’s creation evolved organically between Moss and partner/collaborator Toby Butler, who divided their time between work and parenting to make the album. Moss compares the process to a “slow game of cards,” the duo revealing their hands in a playful spirit. The “third brain in the room,” says Moss, was the modular synth: “You tweak it and it changes the energy. There’s nothing new in that technology, but in terms of the way we’ve worked for years, working with an anonymous synth brain was a new kind of freedom.” 

Thematically, the album is in part an album about selfhood and certainties made unsettled in today’s dystopian theater, somewhat by the pandemic but also as Moss says by the “self-seeking, self-protecting culture” of global economics, where we have forgotten that “competition is just a construct, co-operation is actually the natural way of being . . . Lyrically, I’m laughing and yelling at surveillance capitalism, I’m throwing down sentences that reach out to simply feel good on good terrain, to feel safe on planet earth. There is turbulence, but an understanding that the urge to restructure is growing; human goodness cannot truly be suppressed.” The album is also rooted in Moss’ interest in attachment theory, the idea that the ways we are cared for (or not) in childhood, forge the neurological pathways that build esteem, that shape us — and perhaps the entire world. . “I started to think about the nefarious characters in globalist culture who have such a hold on what’s going on in terms of big pharma, big tech and big political everything. I was thinking, my God, these manipulative people started life needing to be attended to properly and probably were not! All this desperate greed and corruption winds back to maladapted individuals! Then I began seeing them as tiny, neglected humans with an unhealthy attachment cycle.” 

Sonically, the material features Moss’ expressive voice leading the way over fractious synth backgrounds to create something that’s tense yet tender, timeless yet timely; determined to plug into positivity wherever — and whenever — it can be found. “It’s like a carnival of good will,” says Moss, “we see the pretense, the masquerade. Then the realness, the love. That’s why the word ‘empathy’ comes up so much and rolls around amongst the most menacing synths. It cannot be kept down, no matter the weight.” 

In comparison to its immediate predecessor, Moss says that she . . “wanted a more vigorous pulse, I wanted more movement. I wanted to feel friction and for things to feel emotionally disruptive this time around.”

Centered around Moss’ plaintive and yearning delivery paired with glistening synths arpeggios, skittering beats and a relentless motorik-like groove, Internal Working Model‘s latest single “Come And Find Me” is simultaneously sultry, forceful and menacing in a way that brings Peter Gabriel‘s Security to my mind. But the song is rooted in Moss’ incisive sociopolitical commentary and thinking. “The idea running throughout this track is that co-operation is natural, and competition is a construct,” Moss explains. “I’m trying to be the bigger man, always seeing . . .Using empathy as the guide, we could neutralize the bad guys. My favorite lines are these: ‘This should be embodied dream space, should be free space, should be fair. That’s all’. I mean, that is all, right?! It’s such a rhythmic track, and the synth arpeggios layer up in a way that adds electricity and force to the ideas in the song; resistance against obstacles to fairness.”

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

Brontë Horder is a rising Aussie-born and-based singer/songwriter, composer and producer, who has written and produced both scores and bespoke songs for TV, films and documentary projects. Her song “Day By Day,” which appeared in the short film Fourteen received a Best Original Song Composed For The Screen nomination at 2019’s APRA-AGSC Screen Music Awardss. Holder also wrote and produced “Everybody Wants To Be Me,” which appeared in Chloe Morello’s YouTube series Not So Famous.

The rising Aussie singer/songwriter, composer and producer has also made a name for herself as a session vocalist, contributing vocals to a variety of projects and ad campaigns, including Survivor Australia, Celebrity Name Game and the ABC. After winning Sony Music Australia‘s songwriting competition Breaking Ground back in 2013, Holder stepped out into the spotlight as a solo artist.

Her video for “The Eleventh Hour” premiered on MTV Australia. “Switch It Off” received nods at the Indie Music Channel Awards for Best Pop Song, Best Pop Recording and Best Female Pop Artist.

Cali Satellites specialize in effortless yet deliberately crafted songwriting that’s sometimes beautiful, sometimes dark and always engaging. Their debut single “In the Sunshine” is a silky bit of electro pop/house with nods to funk and indie rock that features sultry vocals from Los Angeles-based artist TIAAN.

Leo Gaurdo is an Italian-born, Melbourne-based DJ, producer and sound engineer, who started DJ’ing at a very young age. Back in 2001, he gained popularity within Italy’s house music scene after playing at Chalet delle Rose. In 2008, Guardo relocated to Australia with the intention of perfecting his skills in sound engineering. With over a decade in the audio industry, Guardo has worked on a number of projects across music, television. But recently, the Italian-born, Aussie-based DJ, producer and sound engineer has been focused on his own production work, releasing crowd pleasing material that meshes elements of tech, deep and house grooves with Balearic and tribal house through several renowned electronic music labels, including Orianna Music, MoBlack Records, King Street Sounds, Wired, Tribe Records and Merecumbe Recordings among others.

The trio collaborated together on the four-song EP Only The Good Ones, which was released earlier this year. Thematically, the EP focuses on the power of words — especially on our mindset. The EP’s first single, EP title track “Only The Good Ones” is a slickly produced pop confection centered around glistening, reverb-drenched guitar, shimmering synth arpeggios, skittering beats and a soaring hook paired with Horder’s ethereal vocals. Sonically, “Only The Good Ones” manages to be simultaneously radio friendly and as though it could played at clubs in Ibiza.

“Only The Good Ones” can trace its origins back to a jam session between Holder and members of Cali Satellites. “At the time we were listening to stories of people who had distorted perceptions of themselves. As Brontë was searching for a melody, out came the lyrics, being at war with ourselves and wanting to reframe the way we think and speak about our minds and our bodies. Everyone’s inner dialogue would be so much kinder if we treated ourselves the way we treat our friends. When our friends talk about their insecurities, we always say beautiful words to them, encouraging them to practice love and forgiveness like ‘don’t be so hard on yourself ’ & ‘you’re doing an amazing job,'” they explain. “We sent it to Leo, who felt inspired and imbued his electronic magic.” Ultimately, the song is a gentle, cautionary tale, that reminds the listener to choose their words carefully.

.

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: MARBLES Shares Breezy and Bittersweet “One of a Kind”

Kolbotn, Norway-based dream pop outfit MARBLES — Ferdinand Widmer (vocals, bass), Marius Ringen (drums), Adrian Sandberg (synths) and Marcus Widmer (guitar) — features members, who come from a variety of musical backgrounds with many of the band’s members also playing in the black metal bands that the city is best known for internationally. 

When the band started, its members were initially unsure exactly what sound and genre this new music would be, but they quickly discovered a shred interest in dream pop, indie and disco styles, and they were able to capture a unique vibe together in their jam sessions. That unique vibe was immediately present on their debut single “European Dream.” And from there, the Norwegian outfit quickly honed and built upon the blueprint that song set out for their overall sound.

The Norwegian pop outfit’s highly-anticipated sophomore album Humour is slated for a February 10, 2012 through Playground Music. The album will feature three singles released over the course of this year, including “World Inside Me,” a deliberately crafted mid-tempo and breezy Washed Out and Brothertiger-like bop that’s underpinned by a deep-seated — and perhaps hard won — introspection.

“‘World Inside Me’was written in our most isolated period through the pandemic. It tries to describe a feeling of loneliness that is mostly conjured by our own mind. Even though there are options and offers from the outside world, sometimes you just feel better in your own sphere,” the Norwegian dream pop outfit explains. “Living in your own little world (or bubble) can feel both pleasant and safe, but also quickly turn into a lonesome and desperate state of mind.” 

Album single “One of Kind” is a subdued, introspective and woozy bop centered around glistening synth arpeggios, skittering four-on-the-floor paired with Widmer’s ethereal vocals and the band’s unerring knack for well-crafted, catchy hooks. But the song is rooted in bittersweet, lived-in experience: MARBLES’ Ferdinand Widmer explains that “One of a Kind” is all about the experience of realizing that a relationship in your life — whether it be a friend, family member or romantic partner — and coming to terms with the fact that you are moving in different directions.

“Our message with ‘One of a Kind’ is that – sometimes it’s ok to lose contact with someone close in your life. Maybe you evolve differently or go down different paths. You come to the point in a relationship where both parts have moved on, and you´re still trying to accept it for a good thing. Doing your best to cherish their accomplishments in life. You’ll never find someone similar, and that’s just life. You still want the best for them. And you understand that ‘forever regretfulness’ can be a curse.”

The accompanying video for “One of a Kind” features the band’s Ferdinand Widmer and a green screen backdrop. Leaning hard into the goofiness and obvious fakery of its setup, Widmer is inserted into the screensaver type of backdrops like the photo booth karaoke machines you’d see at your local mall.