Tag: Ani Glass (Page 1 of 3)

Ten Years Of TEC: STILL PUSHING THE ENVELOPE

March 16, 2020 /

The Electricity Club celebrates its tenth birthday and it really has been synthly the best.

At the HEAVEN 17 aftershow party for their triumphant gig at The Magna Science Park on 6th March 2010, following chats with Glenn Gregory, Martyn Ware, Paul Humphreys and Claudia Brücken, interview opportunities opened up.

It was obvious there was gap waiting to be filled for a quality web publication that featured the best in new and classic electronic pop without having to lower itself to using the dreaded “80s” label. The Electricity Club was it and became reality on 15th March 2010.

Electronic pop music didn’t start in that Thatcher decade and certainly didn’t end there either. So there was even an editorial diktat which banned The Electricity Club’s writers from using the lazy”80s” term as a reference. Tellingly, several PR representatives said that one of the site’s main appeals was that it avoided the whole nostalgia bent that had been presented by both virtual and physical media.

At the time, kooky female fronted keyboard based pop like LA ROUX, LITTLE BOOTS, LADYHAWKE, LADY GAGA and MARINA & THE DIAMONDS were among those touted as being the future at the time. But it proved to be something of a red herring, as those acts evolved back into what they actually were, conventional pop acts.

The Electricity Club preferred the sort of innovative synthpop as outlined in BBC4’s Synth Britannia documentary with the next generation of artists like MARSHEAUX, VILE ELECTRODES, VILLA NAH and MIRRORS more than fitting the bill and that ethos of featuring pop music using synthesizers stuck too.

Meanwhile, The Electricity Club’s portfolio expanded swiftly with key personalities such as Rusty Egan, Sarah Blackwood, Richard James Burgess, Warren Cann, Chris Payne, Thomas Dolby, John Foxx, Andy McCluskey, Neil Arthur, Alan Wilder, Mark Reeder, Gary Langan, Jori Hulkkonen, Howard Jones, Mira Aroyo, Sarah Nixey and Hannah Peel among those giving interviews to the site during its first two years.

The Electricity Club has always prided itself in asking the questions that have never usually been asked, but which fans want to know the answers to. And it was with this reputation for intelligent and well researched interviewing that in March 2011, the site was granted its biggest coup yet.

Speaking to Stephen Morris of the then-on hiatus NEW ORDER, the drummer cryptically hinted during the ensuing chat that Manchester’s finest would return by saying “I never say never really”; and that is exactly what happened in Autumn of that year and the band have been there since, as popular as ever and still making great music with the release of ‘Music Complete’ in 2015.

Monday 21st March 2011 was an interesting day that partied like it was 1981 when it saw the release of albums by DURAN DURAN, THE HUMAN LEAGUE and JOHN FOXX & THE MATHS. Also in 2011, Mute Records celebrated their influential legacy with a weekender also at London’s Roundhouse which culminated in ERASURE, YAZOO and THE ASSEMBLY performing in the same set.

Despite the ‘Brilliant’ return of ULTRAVOX, 2012 paled in comparison after such a fruitful year and several acts who were featured probably would not have gained as much coverage in more competitive periods. With pressure from outsiders as to what was hot and what was not, this was the only time The Electricity Club felt it was obliged to support a domestic scene.

But realising acts like HURTS and STRANGERS were actually just jumping on an apparent synth bandwagon and possessing more style than substance, The Electricity Club decided to change tact and only featured acts it felt truly passionate about, even if it meant upsetting the wider synth community. The reasoning being that just because a band uses a synthesizer doesn’t mean it is good.

During this time, MIRRORS sadly disbanded while VILLA NAH mutated into SIN COS TAN. But the year did see the launch of CHVRCHES who stood out from the crowd with their opening gambit ‘Lies’. With their Taylor Swift gone electro template, Lauren Mayberry and Co managed to engage an audience who didn’t know or care what a Moog Voyager was, to listen to synthpop!

2013 turned out to be one of the best years for electronic pop since its Synth Britannia heyday. What The Electricity Club achieved during this year would take up a whole article in itself… there were high profile interviews with Alison Moyet, Gary Numan and Karl Bartos while OMD released the album of the decade in ‘English Electric’. PET SHOP BOYS made up for their ‘Elysium’ misstep with ‘Electric’ while there was finally a third volume in BEF’s ‘Music Of Quality & Distinction’ covers series.

Although 2014 started tremendously with The Electricity Club being invited to meet Karl Bartos and Wolfgang Flür in Cologne, the year suffered next to quality of 2013.

The interviews continued, particularly with key figures from the Synth Britannia era including Midge Ure and the often forgotten man of the period Jo Callis who was a key member of THE HUMAN LEAGUE during their imperial phase.

But the year saw grandeurs of delusion at their highest, with one artist of a far too normal disposition in particular failing to realise that in order for a crowdfunding campaign to succeed, they needed to actually have quite a few fans in the first place!

Then, there was the similarly clueless Alt-Fest debacle which saw the organisers play Fantasy Festival with no cash to underwrite the infrastructure to enable it to actually happen!

Sadly today, there are still egotistic chancers organising events with zero budget and the money from ticket sales being fleeced to fund their holidays. But these artificial factors are rarely considered and so long as there are lower league artists desperate to play for nowt and a misguided enhancement in profile that is often on a platform that provides minimal exposure anyway, then the confidence tricks will continue.

2015 saw the local emergence of Rodney Cromwell and Gwenno, while the majestic Swedish duo KITE proved that they were the best synth act in Europe with the ‘VI’ EP and their impressive live show.

It was also the year when ERASURE front man Andy Bell gave his first interview to The Electricity Club to offer some revealing insights.

Making something of a comeback after a recorded absence of nearly eight years, Jean-Michel Jarre presented his ambitious two volume ‘Electronica’ project which saw collaborations with a varied pool of musicians including Pete Townsend, Lang Lang, John Carpenter, Vince Clarke, Hans Zimmer, Cyndi Lauper, Sebastien Tellier and Gary Numan.

VILLA NAH returned in 2016, as did YELLO with Fifi Rong as one of their guest vocalists while APOPTYGMA BERZERK went instrumental and entered the ‘Exit Popularity Contest’. Riding on the profile generated from their ‘A Broken Frame’ covers album, MARSHEAUX released their biggest-selling long player to date, a two city concept in ‘Ath.Lon’. This was also the year that The Electricity Club first became acquainted with the analogue synthesizer heaven of Johan Baeckström, a modern day Vince Clarke if ever there was one.

2017 saw a bumper crop of great albums from the likes of I SPEAK MACHINE, LCD SOUNDSYSTEM, SOULWAX, IAMX, GOLDFRAPP and DAILY PLANET, while veterans such as Alison Moyet and Gary Numan produced their best work of the 21st Century.

However DEPECHE MODE unleashed their most dire record yet in ‘Spirit’, a dreary exercise in faux activism bereft of tunes. Salt was rubbed into the wound when they merely plonked an underwhelming arena show into a stadium for their summer London show.

The trend was to continue later in 2019 as DEPECHE MODE just plonked 14 albums into a boxed set, while OMD offered an album of quality unreleased material in their ‘Souvenir’ package.

And with DEPECHE MODE’s sad descent into a third rate pseudo-rock combo during the last 15 years to appease that ghastly mainstream American institution called The Rock and Roll Hall Of Fame with guitars and drums, Dave Gahan in particular with his ungrateful dismissal of the pioneering synth-based material with which he made his fortune with, now has what he has always coveted.

And don’t get The Electricity Club started on the 2019 Moog Innovation Award being given to Martin Gore, a real insult to true synth pioneers if ever there was one, including Daniel Miller, Vince Clarke and Alan Wilder, the three men who actually did the electronic donkey work on those imperial phase DEPECHE MODE albums! Gore may have been a very good songwriter during that time, but a synth innovator? Oh come on!?!

With regards Synth Britannia veterans, new albums in 2017 from Richard Barbieri and Steve Jansen saw a revived interest in JAPAN, the band with which they made their name.

Despite releasing their final album ‘Tin Drum’ in 1981, as a later conversation with one-time guitarist Rob Dean proved, cumulatively from related article views, JAPAN became the most popular act on The Electricity Club.

The return of SOFT CELL dominated 2018 with a lavish boxed set that was not just comprised of previously released long players, new songs, new books, a BBC documentary and a spectacular farewell show at London’s O2 Arena.

Meanwhile, adopting a much lower profile were LADYTRON with their comeback and an eventual eponymous sixth album. A Non Stop Electronic Cabaret saw Canadian veterans RATIONAL YOUTH play their first ever UK gig alongside PAGE and PSYCHE, but coming out of Brooklyn to tour with ERASURE was REED & CAROLINE.

EMIKA was ‘Falling In Love With Sadness’ and Swedish songstress IONNALEE showcased one of the best value-for-money live presentations in town, with a show that surreal imagined Kate Bush at a rave!

But from China came STOLEN, one of the most exciting bands in years who were then later rewarded for their graft with a European tour opening for NEW ORDER.

2019 was the year when synthwave graduates Dana Jean Phoenix and Ollie Wride were coming into their own as live performers, while electronic disco maestro Giorgio Moroder embarked on a concert tour for the first time with his songs being the true stars of the show.

Gary Daly of CHINA CRISIS gave his first interview to The Electricity Club to tie in with his solo album ‘Gone From Here’, while a pub lunch with Mark White and Stephen Singleton mutated into an extensive chat about their days in ABC. Lloyd Cole adopted a more synthesized template on ‘Guessworks’ and Britpop went synth as GENEVA’s Andrew Montgomery formed US with Leo Josefsson of Swedish trio LOWE.

If The Electricity Club does have a proudest achievement in its first ten years, then it is giving extensive early coverage to VILLA NAH, MIRRORS, VILE ELECTRODES, METROLAND, TINY MAGNETIC PETS and SOFTWAVE, six acts who were later invited to open on tour for OMD.

Partly because of this success, some of those who were less talented felt aggrieved despite feeling a narcisstic entitlement to be featured. A few deluded artists even went as far as to blame The Electricity Club publically for their lack of traction! NoW that’s what The Electricity Club calls deluded!

If an act is good enough, the fact that The Electricity Club hasn’t featured them should not matter, especially as other electronic and synth blogs are available. After taking its eye of the ball once before in 2012, The Electricity Club maintained a trust of its own gut instinct.

Meanwhile, its stance has been tested by those shouting loudest who instantaneously champion what they perceive as the next big thing like sheep, without really looking ahead at a wider picture. However, TRAVIS on VSTs is just not The Electricity Club’s thing frankly…

The Electricity Club’s participation in the annual ELECTRI_CITY_CONFERENCE in Düsseldorf for on-stage interviews with Rusty Egan, Chris Payne, Mark Reeder and Zeus B Held was another high profile engagement to be proud of. Then there were six TEC branded live events and five rounds of hosting ‘An Audience with Rusty Egan’ in one of the most unenviable but highly entertaining refereeing assignments in music 😉

Other highlights over the last ten years have included The Electricity Club’s 2015 career retrospective on German trio CAMOUFLAGE being edited and used as booklet notes for the Universal Music sanctioned compilation CD ‘The Singles’.

There was also ‘The Electricity Club’ 2CD released by Amour Records in 2019 which included TEC featured acts like MESH, SECTION 25, SIN COS TAN, KID KASIO, NIGHT CLUB, QUIETER THAN SPIDERS, ELECTRONIC CIRCUS, DAYBEHAVIOR, LIEBE, TWINS NATALIA, KID MOXIE, GIRL ONE & THE GREASE GUNS, ELEVEN: ELEVEN, AUTOMATIC WRITING, FOTONOVELA and QUEEN OF HEARTS among its 34 excellent tracks, including a bangin’ MARSHEAUX remix of Katy Perry!

As 2020 settles in, highly regarded artists within the electronic community continue to engage with The Electricity Club. Neil Arthur recently gave his seventh interview as BLANCMANGE and his tenth interview overall, taking into account his side projects FADER and NEAR FUTURE. Not far behind, Martyn Ware has also been a regular interviewee having spoken to the site on six occasions while Paul Humphreys has been interviewed no less than five times.

The Electricity Club is still pushing the envelope, continuing to reflect the interests of people who love the Synth Britannia era and have a desire to hear new music seeded from that ilk. With artists like ANI GLASS, IMI, KNIGHT$, NINA, MECHA MAIKO, GEISTE and PLASMIC among those on the cusp of a wider breakthrough, there is still more excellent music still to be created, discovered and savoured.

One inferior revivalist platform featuring far too much normal rubbish once complained that The Electricity Club “only feature bands that are popular…”; what they actually mean is “only feature bands that are really good”! 😉

The Electricity Club gives its sincerest thanks to everyone who has taken the time read any article on the site over the last ten years, it is greatly appreciated.

‘The Electricity Club’ is released by Amour Records / Minos EMI / Universal Music in collaboration with Undo Records as a 34 track 2CD set in a deluxe 6 panel digipak with track-by-track commentary and ‘O’ card; the compilation be purchased from the following retailers:

Europe http://www.poponaut.de/various-artists-electricity-club-p-18056.html

North America https://stormingthebase.bandcamp.com/merch/various-the-electricity-club-2cd

The tracklisting is:

CD1

01 MAISON VAGUE Synthpop’s Alive
02 KID KASIO Full Moon Blue
03 ELECTRONIC CIRCUS Roundabout
04 DAYBEHAVIOR It’s A Game (Marsheaux remix)
05 MARNIE The Hunter
06 ELEVEN:ELEVEN Through The Veil
07 NIGHT CLUB Cruel Devotion
08 QUEEN OF HEARTS United
09 KATY PERRY Hot ‘N’ Cold (Marsheaux remix)
10 ERASURE Be The One (Paul Humphreys remix)
11 KID MOXIE The Bailor
12 KEEP SHELLY IN ATHENS Oostende
13 FOTONOVELA featuring JAMES NEW Our Sorrow (Original mix)
14 GIRL ONE & THE GREASE GUNS Jessica 6
15 AUTOMATIC WRITING Continuous
16 METROLAND Thalys (London Edit)
17 RODNEY CROMWELL Black Dog

CD2

01 SIN COS TAN Trust
02 POLLY SCATTERGOOD Other Too Endless (Vince Clarke remix)
03 TENEK What Do You Want? (Alternate TEC version)
04 ANALOG ANGEL We Won’t Walk Away
05 ARTHUR & MARTHA Autovia
06 MARSHEAUX Suffer The Children
07 SECTION 25 My Outrage
08 047 featuring LISA PEDERSEN Everything’s Fine
09 TAXX Is It Love?
10 LIEBE I Believe In You
11 QUIETER THAN SPIDERS Shanghai Metro
12 iEUROPEAN featuring WOLFGANG FLÜR Activity Of Sound
13 TWINS NATALIA Destiny
14 MESH Tuesday
15 MIRRORS Between Four Walls
16 OMD Time Burns (Fotonovela rework)
17 VILE ELECTRODES Deep Red

Please note this product is NOT on sale through The Electricity Club website and only via retailers

Text by Chi Ming Lai
Image Design by Volker Maass
16th March 2020

A Short Conversation with ANI GLASS

March 7, 2020 /

‘Mirores’ is the excellent debut long player by Welsh synth songstress ANI GLASS and conceived around the idea of movement and progress around her hometown of Cardiff.

With enticing synthpop songs sitting together with more conceptual found sound adventures, it is one woman’s artistic vision celebrating her heritage and home, empowered by the freedom and democracy opened up via electronic music.

ANI GLASS released her first EP ‘Ffrwydrad Tawel’ in 2017 having served an apprenticeship under mentors such as OMD’s Andy McCluskey and the late Martin Rushent. She kindly chatted to The Electricity Club about realising her artistic vision and remaining true to her culture.

Your debut album ‘Mirores’ has been several years in the making, how did you keep focussed and motivated?

It’s been a real labour of love and I’ve really enjoyed the whole process. That’s not to say that it’s been a never-ending journey of joyful motivation; there have been heavy periods of down-time whilst I focussed on other things such as my Masters and PhD, but even during those times I was busy collecting ideas and building a narrative. I’ve always wanted to have created and crafted a strong body of work and so that was all the motivation I needed to make sure that I finished, no matter how long it took.

What were the main differences in approach for you with the album compared with your debut EP ‘Ffrwydrad Tawel’?

The main difference I would say is that my ideas, musicianship and skills have developed since writing and recording the EP and so my approach to making the album was more considered. Essentially, I would just say that I was far more confident in my ability this time around.

You opted to self-produce the album, what were the pros and cons you uncovered along the way?

The only con I can think of was that it probably took far longer than it may have had someone else produced it, but the list of pros is pretty endless to be honest. I learnt the skill of production, I learnt how to fully realise my ideas from start to finish, I felt more ownership over my music and could work at my own pace and it encouraged me to listen to music in a different and more observant way. It also made me realise the amount of work involved and I now fully understand why Martin Rushent took over a year to finish the second PIPETTES album!

What hardware or software synths were you using, have you been tempted by any of those affordable Behringer clones?

I tend to stick to hardware synths, the ones I used on the album include a Juno 106, Waldorf Blofeld, Fender Rhodes and a Korg Minilogue. There maybe one or two software synths but mainly incidental or background stuff and absolutely no Behringer clones!

The album is an observational electronic travelogue with pop songs and conceptual interludes, that appears to be reminiscent of OMD’s ‘Dazzle Ships’ or ‘English Electric’? What were you main pointers influence-wise?

My main sonic influences were Vangelis, Martin Rushent, Giorgio Moroder, Jean-Michel Jarre and Arthur Russell. I do love OMD so I’m quite happy if anything I make resembles their work! The album is a journey – based around a day in the life of a Cardiff girl – and journeys tend to vary in pace, mood and tone and so I made an album that I felt would represent this.

The ‘Mirores’ title song has a very liberating quality about it, what was its genesis?

It was one of the last songs from the album that I wrote, and I certainly began to feel liberated knowing that I had nearly finished it!

I wanted the song to capture how moments of doubt and despair can evolve into ones of clarity and realisation.

You play with Euro-disco on ‘Ynys Araul’, do you ultimately still have a pop heart within the messages you are looking to convey?

To me, I find pop music to be the most versatile when it comes to freedom of narrative. I’ve never felt restricted by its more traditional format, this structure allows me to experiment with lyrical themes and ideas.

I’m generally quite conceptual and often a little vague when it comes to lyrics which then allows me to discuss almost anything. OMD’s ‘Enola Gay’ is a classic example of how a well-crafted song can be both pop and poignant.

You use sample of Welsh newsreader Huw Edwards within the voice collage on ‘Peirianwaith Perffaith’?

This recording is taken from a news report during the 1997 Welsh devolution referendum results. This momentous event in the social, cultural and political calendar of Wales has played a huge part in the development of Cardiff as a European capital city. What was once the largest exporter of coal in the world, the place where the first million-pound cheque was signed felt like a pretty grey and dreary place during the 80s and 90s.

Despite this, there were a lot of exciting things happening in various pockets around the city and most of all, the people were kind and generous.

The city is unrecognisable today, in part due to the devolution process which has weaved its way into the minds and mechanics of Welsh life, and although we have all the problems of other cities – it’s home.

There’s a gospel flavoured interlude called ‘I.B.T’ which appears to sound familiar?

The recording is of my Mum’s choir CÔR COCHION CAERDYDD (Cardiff Reds), who are a socialist street choir. They sing every Saturday in Cardiff city centre to raise money for great causes and have done for the best part of 40 years. The song itself ‘Freedom Is Coming’ is a South African protest song, but this version is called ‘I.B.T’ which reads in Welsh ‘I Beaty’ (To Beaty). Beaty was a choir member and a wonderful woman and friend, and I recorded the choir singing this song at her funeral.

What was the idea behind including both English and Welsh in ‘Agnes’?

The words spoken at the beginning are taken from an interview done with the artist Agnes Martin as part of a documentary and the Welsh passages that follow depict my feelings about her work (basically, I love her). Her work stops you from thinking or worrying about things, it’s very calming and hugely inspiring – most certainly one of my greatest inspirations.

Do you have any personal favourite tracks on the album, or is it one thread of work for you?

I don’t think I do – they each have specific meanings that are equally important to me. They are reflective of different places, feelings and experiences and I suppose I value them all.

I most certainly have songs which fall into the more traditional ‘pop’ category (and I really love pop), but I don’t think I would say that I like them more.

You’re going to be touring the ‘Mirores’ album first in Wales, what have you got planned as far as its presentation is concerned and will you be taking it further afield?

I’ve recently picked up the bass again – I hadn’t played it since I was a member of GENIE QUEEN a long time ago – so that will make an appearance. Andy McCluskey bought this bass for me (as he managed the band at the time) and so the whole process of learning to play it again has been quite an emotional experience… probably realising that I’m not 19 anymore! I will most certainly be travelling across the border and further afield later in the year so I’m very much looking forward to that.

The Electricity Club gives its grateful thanks to ANI GLASS

Special thanks to Bill Cummings at Sound & Vision PR

‘Mirores’ is released as a CD and download by Recordiau Neb, available direct from http://www.recordiauneb.com/siop

https://www.facebook.com/aniglasscymru/

https://twitter.com/Ani_Glass

https://www.instagram.com/ani_glass/

https://soundcloud.com/aniglass

https://aniglass.bandcamp.com/

Text and Interview by Chi Ming Lai
7th March 2020

ANI GLASS Mirores

February 26, 2020 /

Following her acclaimed first EP ‘Ffrwydrad Tawel’ in 2017, ANI GLASS releases her long-awaited debut album ‘Mirores’.

It is an observational electronic travelogue based around the idea of movement and progress in her hometown of Cardiff.

That might sound overly conceptual but this is a melodic pop record that also gathers ambience of the urban landscape, traffic, people and nature, all coming together to create the score of a city’s symphony.

Fluent in Welsh and Cornish, ANI GLASS uses a play on words for the album’s title which incorporates the name of one of her favourite artists Joan Miró – along with the Cornish word ‘miras’ which means “to look”. Therefore, ‘Mirores’ essentially translates as “Observer”.

An experienced hand who has previously worked with OMD’s Andy McCluskey and the late Martin Rushent, ANI GLASS opted to self-produce ‘Mirores’; she said to The Electricity Club: “I’m really excited about curating the presentation of this album; conceptually and visually. I have a lot of ideas about how I might involve and engage with people who may not be instinctively interested in Welsh electronic music.”

Beginning with ‘The Ballet Of A Good City’ and a folk choir, the subtle arpeggios paint an ambient air which recalls Vangelis, one of the album’s main sonic influences that also includes Martin Rushent, Giorgio Moroder, Jean-Michel Jarre and Arthur Russell.

With the dulcet tones of Welsh newsreader Huw Edwards within the voice collage, an eerie uplifting quality permeates on ‘Peirianwaith Perffaith’; translated as ‘Perfect Machinery’ and with the vibe of Autumnal discontent, the haunting detuned backdrop is perfect for her socially conscious Welsh expressionism and a celebration of devolution. With a wonderfully swirling leadline reminiscent of THE FALLOUT CLUB’s ‘Dream Soldiers’ and a suitably penetrating bass pulse, it is a search for identity in a moving city that is starkly industrial.

With a lovely higher vocal register, the Euro-disco of ‘Ynys Araul’ is rich in traditional melody, offering a pop sensibility and a wonderful triplet bassline. More mature and earnest in tone, ‘Y Cerrynt’ is unusual in having an almost minimal bass presence which gives it a unique quality. But ‘Cariad’ is a solemn set-piece, with sparse contemplative backing like one of OMD’s experiments in vertical take-off.

Following a short taped gospelly interlude ‘IBT’, the ‘Mirores’ title song itself is pure Cmyru synthpop brilliance with wonderful harmonies and a fabulously liberating vocal middle eight. It depicts the journey from dark desperation to motivation and inspiration, so despite the inherent melancholy, the newly married songstress gets to radiate an inspired mood of optimism..

Playing off a claustrophobic soundscape and a bouncy off-beat in the vein of GRIMES, some fabulous icy strings make their presence felt on ‘Goleuo’r Sêr’. Singing in English over a staccato bassline and bell-like rings, ‘Cathedral In The Desert’ is an affectionate reminder musically of what EURYTHMICS once sounded like before they went all rock ‘n’ roll. Continuing in English but in a spoken word fashion, ‘Agnes’ swiftly returns to Welsh with its deeper resonances rich within the sparse synthscape as a touching tribute to artist Agnes Martin .

Closing with ‘The Rising Of The Moon’, a collage of male speech and ANI GLASS’ own layered voices counterpoint as night time covers the city.

Taking a leaf out of her mentor Andy McCluskey and OMD albums such as ‘Dazzle Ships’ and ‘English Electric’, ‘Mirores’ has enticing synthpop songs sitting together with more conceptual found sound adventures.

It is one woman’s artistic vision celebrating her heritage and home, empowered by the freedom and democracy opened up via electronic music.

‘Mirores’ is released on 6th March 2020 by Recordiau Neb, available direct from http://www.recordiauneb.com/siop

Download version available from https://aniglass.bandcamp.com/album/mirores

http://www.recordiauneb.com/ani-glass

https://www.facebook.com/aniglasscymru/

https://twitter.com/Ani_Glass

https://www.instagram.com/ani_glass/

https://soundcloud.com/aniglass

Text by Chi Ming Lai
26th February 2020

GRETA Ardent Spring – Part I

October 10, 2019 /

This is the story of the classically trained German chanteuse who moved to Scandinavia and found success in a Danish girl group.

And when she made the move into creating something solo, she became inspired and sought the help of a Norwegian who lived in Berlin. Copenhagen resident Greta Louise Schenk found wider fame in her adopted home as a member of IDA RED.

But with her FARAO produced debut EP ‘Ardent Spring – Part I’, she has entered the dreamy synthpop universe also occupied by her Norsk collaborator where her angelic vocal tones can shimmer and shine.

Inspired by seasonal changes, Schenk said: “Spring to me is often where I take my time to think and where my head is filled with chaos and new ideas bloom. Especially the spring in Berlin and Copenhagen has inspired me – the very contrast between nature (which is constantly changing) and hard concrete (which pretty much remains as it is).”

Opening with the gorgeously wispy air of ’Spin’, the magnetic allure of Chinese singer FIFI RONG also looms. Meanwhile the filmic ‘Ardent Spring’ title song captures the delightful oddness and crystalline soundscapes of IONNALEE, although with a looser rhythmic backbone and in a more understated manner.

‘Bad Lovers’ plays with aspects of synthwave with electronic percussion and guitar making their presence felt, but the eerie choir sounds and layered voices keep proceedings distinctly Nordic, something not totally unsurprising with FARAO at the helm.

However ‘White’ pierces in a more sinister manner and counterpoints the dreamier trio of tunes that comprise the first half. With its chromatic overtones, hypnotic arpeggio and lightly swung rhythmic backbone, played by a loud rock band, this could be MUSE.

Driven by a subtle Motorik beat, the uptempo swirl of ‘Baby’ is fabulously cosmic pop that recalls ANI GLASS, another independently minded synth songstress with a girl group past. Closing with ‘Wilderness’, it beautifully captures the emotions of regret and turmoil while maintaining hopes and dreams, with Schenk expressing darkness and light in equal measures.

Kitsch, cool, weird and ethereal, this is an impressive debut body of work by GRETA; if this is what ‘Ardent Spring – Part I’ has to offer, then there is much to look forward to with ‘Ardent Spring – Part II’.

‘Ardent Spring – Part I’ is released as a download EP by Celebration Records, available direct from https://gretagretamusic.bandcamp.com/

GRETA 2019 live dates include:

Copenhagen Musikcaféen (18th October)*, Aarhus Radar (19th October)*, Frederiksberg Country Club (9th November), Odense Cirkus Dynamo (23rd November), Copenhagen Trinitatis Church (10th December)

*with PENNY POLICE

https://www.facebook.com/greta.geschenk/

https://www.instagram.com/greta.geschenk/

http://celebrationrecords.dk/work/greta/

https://open.spotify.com/artist/6qcpBIlSWMhas6waVUKCbK

Text by Chi Ming Lai
10th October 2019

ANI GLASS Peirianwaith Perffaith

October 31, 2018 /

ANI GLASS is back with a new single ‘Peirianwaith Perffaith’, an enticing trailer for her forthcoming as-yet-untitled debut album.

Translated as ‘Perfect Machinery’, with the vibe of Autumnal discontent, the haunting detuned backdrop is perfect for her socially conscious Welsh expressionism.

With a wonderfully swirling leadline and a suitably penetrating bass pulse, the Cardiff-based synth songstress says the song is about how the “search for identity in a moving city and society insists on a sense of stillness often found in the shadows of progress”.

The still image visual accompaniment filmed and directed by Jon Pountney with artistic direction by ANI GLASS begins with stark industrial views before drifting into suburbia and a journey into the countryside in time for twilight.

An experienced hand who has previously worked with Andy McCluskey and the late Martin Rushent, ANI GLASS released her acclaimed first EP ‘Ffrwydrad Tawel’ in Spring 2017. Having recently completed a Masters Degree, the songstress is now fully focussed on finishing her self-produced debut long player.

She said to The Electricity Club in January: “I’m really excited about curating the presentation of this album; conceptually and visually. I have a lot of ideas about how I might involve and engage with people who may not be instinctively interested in Welsh electronic music. It’s quite an exciting time to be making music in Wales – something is afoot; I couldn’t tell you what it is but I think it’s going to be exciting and I really want to be a part of it.”

‘Peirianwaith Perffaith’ is released by Recordiau Neb, available on iTunes and Spotify

ANI GLASS’ previous releases are available direct from https://aniglass.bandcamp.com/

https://www.facebook.com/aniglasscymru/

https://twitter.com/Ani_Glass

https://www.instagram.com/ani_glass/

https://soundcloud.com/aniglass

Text by Chi Ming Lai
31st October 2018

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