Tag: Parallels (Page 1 of 4)

PARALLELS vs GLITBITER Interview

PARALLELS and GLITBITER are the respective music vehicles of Torontonian Holly Dodson and New Yorker Florence Bullock.

As PARALLELS, Dodson has already released four albums, the most recent being 2021’s ‘Supersymmetry’ and in the same year, ‘Journey’s End’ from the soundtrack of the short film ‘Proximity’ with fellow Canadian RADIO WOLF won Best Song at the 2021 Los Angeles Film Awards.

Meanwhile, there have been two GLITBITER EPs ‘Short Stories’ and ‘Glass & Steel’ plus a number of collaborations including with synthwave trailblazer BETAMAXX on ‘Skyhigh’ from his 2019 long player ‘Lost In A Dreamworld’.

Both now based in Los Angeles, Dodson and Bullock have come together with the latter joining the PARALLELS live set-up. They have their biggest show yet when they open for popwave’s leading star Ollie Wride in West Hollywood on Thursday 15 June 2023.

In a break from rehearsals, Holly Dodson and Florence Bullock spoke to ELECTRICITYCLUB.CO.UK about the fruits of their LA union and more…

How did you first become aware of each other?

Holly: I first met Florence when we were on tour with NINA a few years ago and GLITBITER opened the show for us in LA – and that was a gateway to discovering her music. We hung out a few times at synth events, eventually bonding over synths and music production, and LA goth nights and have been friends ever since.

Florence: When I discovered Synthwave, PARALLELS was a name that came up a lot, so back in 2018, I was stoked to see that they were playing a show with NINA, in LA. On a whim, I asked my manager at the time, to see if I could play the show, and I think she got a “yes” back from the promoter within 10 minutes. That show was the first time I met Holly in person and little did I know that I was the start of a beautiful friendship.

So was the ‘Vienna’ remix for PARALLEL’s deluxe reissue of ‘Visionaries’, the first collaboration? How did that come together?

Florence: Yes! I was honored to be asked by Holly to remix a song off of ‘Visionaries’ for its 10th anniversary, and I got to choose ‘Vienna’. Remixes are always a challenge for me, especially when the song is so good, to begin with, but it was such a pleasure to work with stellar material. I’m also humbled by the cohort of other remixers on the ‘Visionaries’ reissue.

Holly: Yeah! I love Florence’s productions – she has such a unique sound so I approached her about being part of the 10-year Anniversary. I basically let the artists pick whatever song they were drawn to, so was really excited when she picked ‘Vienna’ – she put this mythical, dark forest, haunting spin on it and I loved it from first listen.

What are your favourite tracks by the other?

Holly: ’See You In The Trees’ and ‘Blade’ are two of my top favorites, GLITBITER was also featured on ASTARAPART’s album ‘Sky Pixels’ with a song called ‘Skybridge’ – it’s epic and sweeps me away to a magical dreamworld.

Florence: ‘Dry Blood’ has been in my rotation for years, so I have to mention that one. Even more so, now, since it’s so fun to play live, and I get to duel synths with Holly. If we’re talking newer stuff, I obsessed with ‘Handle With Care’.

How did the idea for playing live together come about? Which artists did you bond over?

Holly: I think we mostly bonded over the synth scene – but I was looking to put together a new PARALLELS line-up and do a tour post-lockdown. Florence immediately came to mind on keys and vocals, and maybe she didn’t know what she was getting into at the time haha – but she said yes! So it’s been awesome sharing the stage with another synth-queen, I feel like that’s sort of rare.

Florence: I still can’t believe that Holly trusted me enough to play keyboards for her, haha! But I couldn’t say no to being part of such an amazing project, and working with such talented musicians. We honestly mostly bonded over our mutual musician friends, especially those in the synth world.

What was the thinking behind The Factory Sessions? How did you find the filming?

Florence: I’ll leave it to Holly to talk about the vision, since it was all her! But on my end, I was along for the ride, and it was such a fun and unique experience. Despite it being sweltering hot in the warehouse where we filmed, I loved every second, and even got to wear something other than black clothing.

Holly: In putting together a new live band, new life was injected into the songs… some I’ve been playing forever! So I wanted to showcase that in ‘The Factory Sessions’ EP. We named it after Factory Records and sort of the idea of getting back to this project’s roots – revisiting some of those Factory Records artists that initially inspired the PARALLELS sound.

We filmed 6 songs in one day and it was a lot! But I wanted it to be live off the floor – so we put ourselves under pressure to make it happen. Luckily director Brad A. Kinnan could keep up 🙂

You have this gig in Hollywood opening for Ollie Wride in Hollywood, what can those present expect?

Holly: Yes! We can’t wait to play the legendary Troubadour – I can’t believe the acts that played on that stage. We’ve also been jamming with a bass player so fans are going to get the full band treatment – Florence on keys, Colin Knighton on guitar, Christopher Pedraza on drums and Walter Bernath on bass, and of course me on vocals + keys. We’re absolutely thrilled to get to share the night with Ollie Wride – I’m such a fan of his, plus it’s his stateside debut so there will be lots of love!

Florence: An absolutely incredible show. Seriously, if you can still get tickets by the time this comes out, RUN to the box office. First of all, you don’t want to miss Ollie. He is seriously one of the most incredible performers out there, today, and he definitely has a spectacular set planned for the audience. As for us, PARALLELS is now a five piece on stage, so expect your favorite synth parts mixed in with a bit more rock ‘n’ roll. It’s been so fun rehearsing these last couple of months, and I can’t wait for everyone to hear what we have in store.

What else musically have you each got coming up?

Holly: PARALLELS have a little tour planned for the fall – so over the summer I’m going to start planting the seeds for a new record, which would involve some new co-writes and exploration into different styles. I’m looking forward to challenging myself in that way.

Florence: GLITBITER and a handful of other creative endeavors were put on a bit of a hiatus, this past year, while I dealt with some medical issues. But things are finally going in the right direction, so I’m hoping I’ll be back on the production train in the coming months. It’s been way too long.


ELECTRICITYCLUB.CO.UK gives its warmest thanks to Holly Dodson and Florence Bullock

PARALLELS ‘The Factory Sessions’ EP + ‘Supersymmetry’ are available digitally from https://parallels.bandcamp.com/

GLITBITER ‘Short Stories’ + ‘Glass & Steel’ EPs are available digitally from https://glitbiter.bandcamp.com/

PARALLELS open for Ollie Wride at Troubadour in West Hollywood CA on Thursday 15 June 2023

http://www.iloveparallels.com/

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https://www.instagram.com/iloveparallels

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Text and Interview by Chi Ming Lai
13 June 2023

PARALLELS Supersymmetry

‘Supersymmetry’ is the fifth PARALLELS album, written, produced and mixed by front-woman Holly Dodson.

With regards outside help, she keeps it in the Dodson family with Nick on drums and Rich on guitar / bass, while RADIO WOLF aka Oliver Blair who collaborated with her on the soundtrack for the Sci-Fi feature film ‘Proximity’ also makes an appearance. ‘Supersymmetry’ is the first PARALLELS album recorded since the Toronto songstress’ relocation to Los Angeles. Although recorded during lockdown, the album is something of a synthpop daydream, “Conjuring classic pop sentiments of neon nights, fading into color on Polaroid film”.

Originally released in February 2021 as a standalone single, ‘Hidden Sun’ opened the ‘Supersymmetry’ account with an airy ballad featuring a fabulous swooping ribbon controlled synth solo. But adopting a strident bass triplet, ‘Stardust’ states its intentions, sparkling as the album’s first track. Meanwhile, there’s a vibrancy to ‘The Magic Hour’ which celebrates new love and new hope, the synth backdrop complemented by Oliver Blair’s six string like a song for modern day John Hughes film.

Utilising a hypnotic blippy cascade before bursting into percussive new wave pop, ‘Handle With Care’ allows plenty of room for the strong angelic voice of Holly Dodson to soar. Adding some rockier grit, ‘Fantastique’ recalls sweet dreams of days gone by while ‘Sophia’ offers a retro-futuristic AOR waltz. The uptempo synthbop of ‘Happier’ reflects Holly Dodson’s positivity and along similar lines, ‘True Desire’ could be a sunny electro take on KATRINA & THE WAVES and THE PRETENDERS.

‘Alchemy’ presents a filmic rock ballad that could be ‘About Last Night’ complete with big drums and guitars as well as those classic keyboard signatures used in Brat Pack films starring Demi Moore.

But closing ‘Supersymmetry’ is a homely piano take recorded live in Toronto of ‘Edge Of The Universe’, the PARALLELS collaboration with FUTURECOP! to complete the circle.

‘Supersymmetry’ is a musical journey swathed in Holly Dodson’s strength of optimism. Having found love and looking forward to the future despite the lingering uncertainty of the times, its ten songs capture her airy escapist universe. If you are already a PARALLELS fan, you will not be disappointed.


‘Supersymmetry’ is released as a CD, bone coloured vinyl LP and download available from
https://parallels.bandcamp.com/album/supersymmetry

http://www.iloveparallels.com/

https://www.facebook.com/Parallels

https://twitter.com/iloveparallels

https://www.instagram.com/iloveparallels/

https://open.spotify.com/album/5WFXqU0gxsPha0qxD1eVJq

Sign up to PARALLELS Patreon at https://www.patreon.com/iloveparallels


Text by Chi Ming Lai
Photos by Brad A Kinnan
27th August 2021

GLITBITER Interview

Photo by Cameron Loewenstein

GLITBITER is the musical vehicle of Los Angeles-based musician and vocalist Florence Bullock.

Following the release of her three song debut EP ‘Short Stories’ in 2017, GLITBITER went on to collaborate with BETAMAXX on the track ‘Skyhigh’ from the acclaimed album ‘Lost In A Dreamworld’ and remixed Canadian popwavers PARALLELS. Meanwhile, she also joined North American avant pop combo DEAD ASTRONAUTS for their most recent album ‘Silhouettes’.

With all these new found experiences to develop her own brand of “Dreamy synthwave for the dark soul”, there then came the impressive six song mini-album ‘Glass & Steel’, a fine showcase for an appealing feminine take on the synth form boosted by previous schooling in more traditional forms for that vital musicality.

Taking time out from rehearsing for her first live gig in quite a while and releasing a brand new single called ‘Fall Apart’ written for the ‘Of Tears & Blood’ podcast, Florence Bullock spoke to ELECTRICITYCLUB.CO.UK about the importance of being GLITBITER…

The ‘Glass & Steel’ mini-album has been a while coming as your first release ‘Short Stories’ was released in 2017?

Yes, I know it’s taken more forever to get new music out! I’ve had the songs on ‘Glass & Steel’ ready to go for ages, but there were lots of ups and downs with people who were potentially going to work on it with me, and frankly, a good deal of procrastination. Ultimately, I realized I just had to do it myself. Luckily, since 2017, I’ve stayed fairly active by playing live shows and doing some collaborations with some amazing people.

Photo by Cameron Loewenstein

How do you look back on the ‘Short Stories’ EP and how you’ve grown as an artist and producer since?

I’m still immensely proud of ‘Short Stories’. I had never released any music up until that point, and really had no idea what to do after I had written and produced the songs. Mixing and mastering were still an enigma to me, so I asked my friend Mike Balboa (who, incidentally mixed ‘Follower’ and ‘Turn’ off of ‘G&S’) for advice, and he said “Just release the songs. You’ll get better as time goes on”.

So, as I’ve learned countless times since, I did it myself. ‘Short Stories’ is 100% me (mastering included), and even though I know it’s not produced perfectly, people still seem to enjoy it. I had something to show after that EP was released, and it opened new doors, allowing me to make new connections, and grow.

What made you decide to use synths as your tools of expression?

I’ve always been drawn to synthesizer sounds. I didn’t necessarily grow up listening to electronic music, but I think it was some combination of subconsciously taking in some late ‘80s and early ‘90s music, as well as video and computer game music that I found along the way. I was particularly enamoured with music from the game ‘Candy Crisis’, which I found out later was made by a bunch of artists in the Mod scene in the late ‘90s. Also, no joke, I was obsessed with EIFFEL 65’s ‘Europop’ in 1999. Sounds like those really stuck with me, and then, when I discovered Synthwave, it really brought everything full circle.

Also, it was practical for me. After years of piano lessons, and some computer production classes in college, I had the skills to make music with synths. I could also do it all “in the box” and save a few bucks.

Photo by Jerry Herrera

Do you have any favourite VSTs or hardware?

Software-wise, I love Diva, and the CS-80 and Jupiter 8 Arturia emulators. My favourite, for years, has been Dune, which is probably my most used VST. I don’t use a ton of hardware, but I occasionally whip out my MicroKorg, especially for the vocoder. I also acquired an Omnichord, last year, which I’m excited to use on some upcoming stuff – fun fact, I added some Omnichord on ‘Low Light’, which is the first track on DEAD ASTRONAUTS’ ‘Silhouettes’.

There are lots of women now in synth, did that give you more encouragement? Who do you look on as your sisters-in-arms?

Actually, when I started GLITBITER, it was the lack of female presence in the scene that really drove me. There was a clear void that I could help fill.

I’m happy to say that, though we’re still the minority, there are so many other women in the scene, now, and some of those ladies are making some of the biggest waves (pun intended?). Of course, being part of a relatively small group of women, I think we all naturally have a bond, whether we’re good friends, or just acquaintances. But a big shoutout to all the ladies whom I’ve had the pleasure of meeting in person and/or played shows with – BUNNY X, Czarina, Dana Jean Phoenix, Danielle of WYNDSRFR, Holly of PARALLELS, Julie of FUTURE HOLOTAPE, Lau, Mecha Maiko, Megan McDuffee and Nina.

So is the ‘Girl In A Storm’ autobiographical?

Sort of! Generally, my lyrics are a stream of consciousness – some ideas and phrases in songs connect, and some don’t. For this song in particular, it’s mostly descriptions of images and fears from childhood, with some other stuff that is completely unrelated. In the end, none of it matters, now (“she’s not the same old girl”). But I also change my interpretations of my lyrics, occasionally, so I invite anyone to interpret them how they see fit. I like having lyrics that make people think. Also, funny story, I performed this song only once at a live show, and it happened to be during Hurricane Florence, in 2018.

Photo by Jerry Herrera

‘Follower’ and ‘Turn’ both show a shift move into a more sophisticated use of effects, rhythms and textures?

It’s funny, because I think of those songs as the more straightforward ones on the album. They’re the only two that follow “the formula” (verse, chorus, verse, chorus, bridge, chorus). They both have an underlying arpeggio, which gives them more of a fast-moving texture, as opposed to the other songs.

Basically, I think what I’m getting at is… I tricked you into making it seem like these were more complicated than they are! But also, those two were mixed by my friend Mike Balboa, and he knows what he’s doing. His mixing definitely helped bring those two songs to life.

‘Blade’ features some great synthphonic soloing, what inspired that?

I love a good synth melody. It’s one of the main reasons why I love synthwave so much – the fact that I can sing along to synth lines and solos, just as easily as the vocal melodies. Honestly, I’m pretty sure the structure of ‘Blade’ was subconsciously adapted from ‘Subdivisions’ by RUSH. That synth melody after the chorus is one of my favorites of all time – Not technically brilliant, but just a damn good melody. In terms of ‘Blade’, I particularly love how the vocal chorus leads into synth line. It’s something that’s really fun to play live, too.

You opted not to include the interim single ‘See You In The Trees’ on ‘Glass & Steel’, any particular reasons?

I owe a lot of [relative] success to ‘See You In The Trees’, but it was always meant to be a stand-alone song. To me, it’s old news. It’s been so long since I’ve released anything, and I didn’t want to look to the past. ‘Glass & Steel’ had to be its own new thing and I didn’t want an old single to overshadow that.

On BETAMAXX’s ‘Lost In A Dreamworld’ album, you contributed to ‘Skyhigh’ which was one of the highlights, how was the collaboration process?

It was great working with Nick Morey and George Hetzer. First of all, it was an honor to be included on that album – BETAMAXX was one of the first artists who I listened to when I discovered synthwave, and to be included among the other power house collaborators MECHA MAIKOVANDAL MOON and Robert Parker was something out of dream.

Nick originally sent me a few songs to choose from, and after playing around with some melodies, ‘Skyhigh’ (which was already named) was the clear winner. I think it took me an hour to come up with the melody and lyrics – it was just one of those things that flowed out, immediately, especially since the music was so great to begin with. After that, there was barely any other back and forth – Just updates from Nick and George, and how the production transformed along the way.

Photo by Cameron Loewenstein

There was that mad metal opera hybrid you did with Gregorio Franco called ‘Awakening’ which brought out another side of you?

This was one of the most fun collaborations I’ve done, thus far. When Gregorio sent that over to me, I honestly didn’t know what to do with it. It was darker, and heavier than anything I had lent vocals to in the past and my normal singing voice just wasn’t quite cutting it for me. It had more power metal vibes, than anything related to synthwave and that’s when I had my aha moment – “Why don’t I just pull a ‘Nightwish’?”.

I studied classical voice for years, and throughout college, so operatic vocals are actually more natural to me than how I usually sing, nowadays. Once I decided to go in that direction, I came up with the melody immediately. The hardest part was re-analyzing how to sing into my microphone – basically I had to be a good two feet further away than normal!

You did a wonderful remix of ‘Vienna’ for PARALLELS 10th Anniversary release of their debut album ‘Visionaries’. There are melodic synth phrases which are similar to Scotland’s WITCH OF THE VALE and their ‘Trust The Pain’; it appears you both perhaps come from like-minded places musically, albeit with an ocean between you?

Full disclosure, I was unfamiliar with WITCH OF THE VALE until this interview, but I totally hear the similarity! Interestingly, vocally, they remind me a lot of AUTUMN’s ‘Grey Solace’, who were in heavy rotation for me around 2003. I listened to a lot of alt / goth music in high school, so I can see where we could have been drawing from similar places!

Back to the ‘Glass & Steel’ mini-album, ‘Out of the Wasteland’ and ‘Fights & Fears’ have folkier overtones, does that come from anywhere particular in your psyche?

Well, I wasn’t consciously going for folk, but I’ll take it! My mom listened to a lot of folk rock when I was growing up (James Taylor, Judy Collins, Art Garfunkel etc), and that has influenced me in some shapes and forms. ‘Out of the Wasteland’ is in triple meter, which you don’t find too much in synthwave, but is much more common in folk songs. As for ‘Fights & Fears’, I wanted a more laid back song, that sort of flowed onward, and evolved into an organic structure, and different modulations. Not sure if that’s from my folk psyche, but the concept is a step away from what I’ve generally heard in synthwave.

Photo by Cameron Loewenstein

Do you have a favourite track, either your own or any collaboration so far? What makes it so special for you?

I would say my favorite track is ‘Out Of The Wasteland’. I wrote it ages ago, and it has literally taken me years to get it to its final state, which I am finally happy with. There’s a simple counterpoint melody between the vocals and a synth bell sound in the chorus that I’ve always loved.

Also, the lyrics happen to be a metaphor for the song and its evolution, which was not even initially intended. I like simple melodies, and when things fall into place, and ‘Out Of The Wasteland’ checks all of the boxes.

How have you found taking your music out live because presenting synthwave in that environment is one of its inherent challenges?

Instrumental electronic music is hard to translate into a live setting. I’ve seen countless synthwave acts essentially just “hit the play button”. But I feel that I have an advantage, because my songs have vocals. Sure, I have a backing track – I’m basically a one-woman band, on stage, and I can’t play every single part, but being able to move from behind my keyboard, and sing to the audience allows me to connect to the crowd in ways that instrumental-only acts can’t.

Of course, playing and singing live has its own set of challenges – I can’t sing or play a keyboard part 25 times until it’s perfect – I have one shot. Also, coming from a classical voice background, amplified performance was a completely different ballgame for me. Getting used to singing into a microphone and being able to comfortably hear backing tracks is still something I’m learning to perfect, but I absolutely love the challenge.

Photo by Jerry Herrera

Now you have built some profile and momentum, will the next body of work be sooner rather than later?

I have an upcoming show on June 26th! I’m opening for my friends WYNDSRFR, who incidentally just released a stellar album called ‘Golden Years’. Hopefully more shows will follow after this one. Playing (and seeing) live shows is the thing that I’ve missed the most over the last year and a half – they’re little social hubs where I get to see friends, and meet new people, and I’m stoked that things are opening back up again.

Also, yes, I mentally got over a big mountain with the release of ‘Glass & Steel’, so there should be more from me sooner rather than later. I might have an additional single, and a few collaborations on the near horizon…

Your hopes and fears as the world comes out to play again?

Again, I’m hoping to play live more, and hopefully not just in California. I’ve previously done some traveling to play a show, here and there, around the US, and that has been the most fun. I’m definitely looking forward to more opportunities to fly around, meet new people, and play tunes.

Fears? I tend to be optimistic (maybe too optimistic?), but any fears about the upcoming year have been drowned out by excitement. Let’s leave it at that.


ELECTRICITYCLUB.CO.UK gives its grateful thanks to Florence Bullock

‘Glass & Steel’ is available as a digital mini-album via the usual online platforms including from Bandcamp at https://glitbiter.bandcamp.com/album/glass-steel

https://www.facebook.com/glitbiter

https://twitter.com/glitbiter

https://www.instagram.com/glitbiter/

https://soundcloud.com/glitbiter

https://open.spotify.com/artist/6aUb5Zujn6ZsAuzuxepUsv


Text and Interview by Chi Ming Lai
23rd June 2021

GLITBITER Glass & Steel

GLITBITER is the musical vehicle of Los Angeles-based musician and vocalist Florence Bullock.

Classically trained with a love of esteemed songwriter Jimmy Webb, she describes her style as “Dreamy synthwave for the dark soul”.

One of her forays into the North American synthwave scene included her contribution to BETAMAXX’s ‘Lost In A Dreamworld’ album on ‘Skyhigh’, with the song’s vibrato treated vocal stabs on the coda being a particular delight. There was also a cameo in the video for another BETAMAXX track ‘Never Sleep Again’ which was fronted by gothwavers VANDAL MOON.

Meanwhile, when PARALLELS celebrated the 10 year anniversary of their debut album ‘Visionaries’ with some specially commissioned remixes, GLITBITER’s sparking rework of the song ‘Vienna’ was the best of the bunch. More recently, she joined DEAD ASTRONAUTS for the recently released ‘Silhouettes’ album with ‘Thorns’ being one of the highlights.

Having issued a promising three track EP ‘Short Stories’ in 2017, GLITBITER has taken the next step with a six song mini-album called ‘Glass & Steel’. This title is an appropriate pointer to its contents and the first thing instantly noticeable is the leap in sonic progression compared with her earlier work.

The melancholic folk-laden opener ‘Out of the Wasteland’ adopts a slow swing template and recalls Scotland’s WITCH OF THE VALE or Sweden’s Karin My but enhanced by speedy arpeggios and prominent synthbass drones. More four-to-the-floor with a driving bass triplet, ‘Turn’ gallops into the sunset with a rich display of vocal prowess.

Featuring a soaring sweeping synth solo that is a total delight, ‘Blade’ reveals an angelic crystalline quality to a more archetypical synthwave template although GLITERBITER puts her own stamp on the form, learning lessons from her association with BETAMAXX.

Much more ringy in tone, ‘Girl In A Storm’ applies an interesting use of stuttering rhythm at its start before embarking on its syncopated journey while swathed in folky overtones.

With a meaty rhythmic construction that doesn’t overbear, ‘Follower’ pulsates wonderfully while also providing space to breathe for the gloriously emotive vocals. ‘Glass & Steel’ ends with ‘Fights & Fears’, a lush set piece that includes bright and bent synth passages to take the listener into another zone.

With all the songs written, produced, performed and primarily mixed by GLITBITER except for ‘Turn’ and ‘Follower’ by Mike Balboa, ‘Glass & Steel’ is an impressive debut long form release that avoids most of the synthwave clichés to showcase GLITBITER as an electronic talent for the future.

Dark without being doomy and eschewing the shoegaze distortion or tune aversion that mars the majority of dreampop, ‘Glass & Steel’ provides an appealing feminine air to the synth form with a few traditional elements for that crucial facet of musicality.


‘Glass & Steel’ is available as a download via the usual digital platforms including
https://glitbiter.bandcamp.com/album/glass-steel

https://www.facebook.com/glitbiter

https://twitter.com/glitbiter

https://www.instagram.com/glitbiter/

https://open.spotify.com/album/3zormHJrj6eZdjAFE7ljZs


Text by Chi Ming Lai
3rd May 2021

Introducing VIOLET CHOIR

Phoenix-based VIOLET CHOIR comprise of Mickey Louise and Jesse Pangburn who met at college while studying jazz.

Previously indie rock combo THE PROWLING KIND and dream popsters MRCH, the output from their previous guises appeared in the soundtracks of ‘The Twilight Zone’, ‘Search Party’, ‘13 Reasons Why’, ‘Shameless’ and’ The Vampire Diaries’.

On ‘Reactions’, their 2017 debut album as MRCH, the duo fully embraced a more electronic sound to the point that it was more or less fully sequenced.

Inspired by the likes of independent artists like COMPUTER MAGIC aka DANZ CM and the synthwave breakthrough, there came a change of style with a change of name. So VIOLET CHOIR was born. Their self-titled EP makes use of a Prophet 08, some Moog via the Matriarch and Minitaur, plus Ableton soft synths simulating DX7 bell sounds. Meanwhile a live kit and drum machines sit in tandem alongside occasional electric guitar and bass.

Moody and percussive without resorting to synthwave clichés, ‘Don’t Come Around’ recalls the feel of KLEERUP’s ‘Nothing Left To Die For’ with Jenny Wilson. Nurtured on jazz and rock, Mickey Louise’s voice comes over rich and airy over an appealing electronic pop song that doesn’t sound as long as its five and a half minutes length might suggest.

Although adopting more of a post-punk template with live bass and guitar, ‘Tonight’ still has plenty of synths to add texture including a surprising jazzier twirl and a particularly piercing but melodic sound reminiscent of the sparkly feminine new wave vibe of PARALLELS or CHROMATICS.

Meanwhile, the chunky fuzz and deeper treated vocal counterpoints on ‘Dream About It’ offer a slightly gothic dimension to a slice of precision disco lento, with its dynamic highs and lows projecting in the manner of THE GOLDEN FILTER.

Maintaining that “life is strange”, the sombre root note bass and strident keyboard arpeggio patterns make ‘Friend Song’ the most archetypical synthwave styled offering on the EP, with the breezily wispy vocals contributing to an enjoyable chorus uplift.

The electroclash-derived ‘Kids On Sunset’ adopts a dominant bass triplet for a galloping rhythmic sway that becomes more addictive as it approaches the dancefloor. The presence of the coy feline allure of COMPUTER MAGIC with her track ‘Fuzz’ in particular and the much missed Texan duo ELEVEN:ELEVEN are strong.

This debut EP is not your run-of-the-mill synthwave-by-numbers and by bringing their experience from other genres, VIOLET CHOIR have largely avoided the usual musical catchphrases that can haunt modern electronic pop. What stands out are the songs and the musicality. Time will see Mickey Louise and Jesse Pangburn fully realise the promise on show here.


‘Violet Choir’ EP released on 19th February 2021 by Fervor Records

http://www.violetchoir.com/

https://www.facebook.com/violetchoir/

https://twitter.com/violetchoir

https://www.instagram.com/violetchoir/

https://open.spotify.com/artist/3l62JBwb5peXmTGwKh4DM3


Text by Chi Ming Lai
20th February 2021

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