Tag: Elsewhere Rooftop

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

New Audio: TRAITRS Returns with Propulsive and Anthemic “i was ill, you were wrong”

With the release of their first three albums, 2017’s Rites and Rituals, 2018’s Butcher’s Coin and 2021’s Horses in the Abattoir, Toronto-based coldwave duo TRAITRS — longtime friends Sean Patrick Nolan and Shawn Tucker — firmly established a sound that blended horror-based imagery with anthemic choruses and cinematic, atmospheric soundscapes. And during that time, the duo evolved from bedroom artists selling cassette tapes to amassing millions of streams globally and playing hundreds of shows internationally. 

The Canadian duo’s highly anticipated Josh Korody-produced, Matt Colton-mastered fourth album Possessor is slated for a March 13, 2026 release. According to the band’s Shawn Tucker, Possessor is “the most personal record I have ever written.” The album was written during Toronto’s coldest winter months, informed by storm battered days and a heavy emotional landscape. The pair focused on capturing precise moods, with lyrics serving as the material’s driving force with the surrounding soundscapes grew to mirror the bleak beauty of the writing process.

Possessor will feature the previously released “Burn In Heaven,” a track that channels The Cure, Bauhaus, Depeche Mode and Cocteau Twins, while showcasing their unerring knack for crafting rousingly anthemic hooks and choruses. The album’s second and latest single “i was ill, you were wrong,” continues a remarkable run of brooding and cinematic material. And while channeling a synthesis of New Wave and goth in a way that brings The Cure and New Order to mind, “i was ill, you were wrong,” is a chilly yet achingly heartfelt and intimate tune that showcases the duo’s rousingly anthemic hooks and choruses.

Thematically, the song examines humanity’s denial of its mortality and the complicated structures we build to distract ourselves from the fear of the inevitable, including the fragile bubbles we often create to shield ourselves from the one deeply universal thing that impacts us all — death.

“I felt that song connected me to everything and everyone, it is the one thing we all share and have in common,” the band’s Shawn Tucker says. “It is also a wake up call to live the life you want to live. We only have one chance at this so go dance in the rain.”

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

While cutting his teeth for years touring around the world, collaborating with Washed Out and remixing work by artists like Rhye, Glass Animals, CHVRCHES and Charlotte Gainsbourg, Marius Lauber, the Viersen, Germany-born, Cologne-based singer/songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and producer, best known as Roosevelt quickly became one of most buzzed-about artists in electronic music.

Lauber’s sophomore album, 2018’s Young Romance, saw the acclaimed artist and producer making a decided move away from the slickly produced EDM of his previously released work to a warmer, hook-driven, disco-inspired sound. Fittingly, the album focused on — well, young romance, including the trials, tribulations and frustrations of falling in and out of love, and of desperately trying to carve out some semblance of home while on the road.

The German artist and producer’s third album, last year’s Polydans continued a remarkable run of critically applauded, dance floor friendly jams that effortlessly meshed 80s synth pop and disco — while serving as a love letter to electronic music, inspired by the interconnectivity found on the dance floor.

“Passion,” Lauber’s first bit of new material since last year’s Polydans sees the acclaimed German artist and producer collaborating with the iconic Nile Rodgers on a sleek, club banger centered around the disco legend’s imitable funk guitar licks, Lauber’s plaintive vocals, a strutting and irresistible groove and glistening synths. Bim Amoako-Gyampah contributes soulful backing vocals on the track, too.

While clearly inspired by and indebted to disco’s glorious heyday, “Passion” isn’t a soulless homage of a familiar and beloved sound; at its core it should remind listeners of what makes a great pop song and a club banger — deep, irresistible grooves paired with razor sharp, infectious hooks.

Understandably, the collaboration for a dream come true for Lauber, who says: “Nile has been one of my biggest influences over the years, so working on a track together with him was an absolute dream come true. The track had many different shapes and forms over almost two years, so I’m happy to finally have a version that I’m happy with. Nile and I worked on the track remotely via phone calls and e-mails, before I finally met him in LA to celebrate the completion of it. The man is a living legend to me, and just talking to him about the early disco days was such a big inspiration. ‘Passion’ is an ode to Studio 54, a homage to the energy and ecstasy of late-70s disco.” 

The acclaimed German artist and producer will be on the road for some extensive touring across the European Union and UK later this month through early June. He’ll be touring across North America for much of the summer, including a September 1, 2022 stop at Elsewhere’s Rooftop. Check out the tour dates below.

NORTH AMERICAN LIVE DATES

6.11 – Palm Springs, CA – Splash House 2022 (DJ SET)

6.17 – Houston, TX – White Oak Music Hall

6.18 – Dallas, TX – The Studio at the Factory

6.20 – Atlanta, GA – Terminal West

6.21 – Nashville, TN – Eastside Bowl

6.22 – Columbus, OH – Newport Music Hall

6.24 – Rothbury, MI – Electric Forest Festival

6.26 – Minneapolis, MN – Fine Line Music Cafe

6.28 – Englewood, CO – Gothic Theater

6.29 – Salt Lake City, UT – Soundwell

7.01 – San Francisco, CA – 1015 Folsom (DJ SET)

7.08 – Austin, TX – The Venue (DJ SET)

7.09 – Washington, DC – Flash Rooftop (DJ SET)

7.16 – East Hampton, NY – The Clubhouse Hamptons (DJ SET)

9.01 – Brooklyn, NY – The Rooftop at Elsewhere (DJ SET)

INTERNATIONAL LIVE DATES

5.26 – Hamburg, Germany – Gruenspan

5.27 – Berlin, Germany – Huxley’s

5.29 – Cologne, Germany – Carlswerk Victoria

6.02 – Paris, France – La Trabendo

6.03 – Amsterdam, Netherlands – Melkweg Max

6.06 – London, UK – Electric Ballroom

6.07 – Manchester, UK – Band on the Wall

6.08 – Brussels, Belgium – Orangerie

6.09 – Istanbul, Turkey – Zorlu Performing Arts Centre

8.14 – Buftea, Romania – Summer Well Festival