Author: electricityclub (Page 40 of 420)

“I don’t like country & western, I don’t like rock music… I don’t like rockabilly! I don’t like much really do I? But what I do like, I love passionately!!”: CHRIS LOWE

“Good taste is exclusive”: NICK RHODES

RODNEY CROMWELL vs ROMAN ANGELOS Interview

13 May 2023 /

Following well-received opening slots for BLANCMANGE and A FLOCK OF SEAGULLS in 2022, Rodney Cromwell heads out on the road this June.

The nom de plume of indietronica veteran Adam Cresswell whose previous projects have included SALOON and ARTHUR & MARTHA, his most recent album ‘Memory Box’ provided a hazy soundtrack to a post-truth world with the icy motorik romance of ‘The Winter Palace’ and the NEW ORDER aping ‘Opus 3’ among its highlights.

Support for this first-ever Rodney Cromwell headlining tour comes from Happy Robots label mate Roman Angelos; the sonic nostalgia vehicle of Brooklyn-based producer Rich Bennett, his latest release ‘Supermarkets, Underwater’ collects various ambient remixes of tracks from his long playing muzak and exotica homage ‘Music For Underwater Supermarkets’. Keeping it in the Happy Robots family, German-based combo MOOD TAEG will present a DJ set at the London Servants Jazz Quarters date.

Getting into character in preparation for their upcoming English tour, Rodney Cromwell and Roman Angelos chatted to ELECTRICITYCLUB.CO.UK about their musical common ground, instrumentation preferences, the perils of social media and much more…

How did you become aware of each other?

Roman: I first became aware of Adam from his work with ARTHUR & MARTHA. I think I came across their profile on MySpace and I really dug what they were doing; I also loved the name of the record ‘Music For Hairproducts’! Honestly, seeing someone name-check an Eno album in a tongue-in-cheek manner inspired me to go forward with naming my record ‘Music For Underwater Supermarkets’.

Adam and I then formally met over email at the end of 2017 through our mutual friend Morgane Lhote of STEREOLAB and HOLOGRAM TEEN when he asked if I would produce his track ‘Comrades’. After that we were off to the races!

Rodney: After Morgane introduced us, I then realised Rich was one of the many former members of the rather wonderful US dreampop band MAHOGANY, so I would have seen his name as one of the crossed-out former members on their Wikipedia or Discogs pages. I think Rich’s first commission for Happy Robots was mixing Alice’s ARTHUR & MARTHA remix for the ‘Adjustments’ album, but I could be wrong, my memory is not great (and I have a song about that too).

Your styles of music are quite different so which artists would you say are your common musical ground, if any?

Roman: On the face of it yes, there is a noticeable difference, but I think there are some very strong things at our cores which unite us. It’s funny, Adam and I were *just* talking about what this common thread is the other day! I think that artists like KRAFTWERK and STEREOLAB come through in both of our work, and there is also the obsession and use of vintage synths. I also share a lot of Adam’s reference points as a listener, but they’re not things I put into the Roman Angelos music.

Rodney: I think a deep appreciation of STEREOLAB and KRAFTWERK absolutely. But the other answer would be THE BEATLES. We talked about THE BEATLES endlessly while we were making ‘Memory Box’. It’s going to be hellish when we are on tour, because our synth player Martin is also a BEATLES bore, so I expect us to be talking about the Fabs all the way up the M1, much to the dismay of Richard our guitar player who prefers WU TANG CLAN!

What are your favourite instruments or devices to use when writing? Have you recommended equipment or software to each other?

Roman: I may have suggested a software synth to Adam at some point and he may have laughed at me – ha! For my writing I have a decent library of sounds and a nice set-up to play all my MIDI parts into a computer. I usually try and get a bunch of ideas and parts out as fast as possible, and then I edit later to get the arrangement together. I also find that whenever I’m embarking on a significantly new project, I need a new instrument, whether it be a new guitar, bass, synth (it doesn’t need to be expensive) just something new to clear my head and allow me to explore.

Rodney: I’m still using just the same five synths that I talked about when I played Vintage Synth Trumps with ELECTRICITYCLUB.CO.UK in 2016; the Moog Rogue, Moog Opus 3, ARP Quartet, Korg MS-10 and MicroKorg. Software wise, I’m probably not the right person to recommend anything, I have finally upgraded my 2011 version of GarageBand to LogicX. Let’s just say I’m starting a long journey and I’m currently on the arse-end of the learning curve.

Roman remixed ‘Opus III’ but is there any scope for Rodney to return the compliment?

Roman: One million times yes – you just tell me the tune Adam!

Rodney: Errr you’ll have to speak to my people about that. But seriously, until now you’ve never asked and so I’ve never offered. The less remixing I can do the better, I’m not the fastest worker, as I think we’ve established by now.

What are your favourite tracks by the other?

Roman: Well, I did produce a number of the Rodney Cromwell tracks, so in an attempt to take myself out of the equation, I’ll say that I really loved ‘Wristwatch Television’ and ‘Technocrats’ upon first listen, even before they were fully mixed or produced. They were a joy to work on from beginning to end, and they’re really fun tunes. And I think that ‘Opus 3’ is a real banger. It’s super fun and it’s something I put one while I run, so there’s that!

Rodney: I really love the three tracks on the ‘Italian Soda’ 7” single and I’ve listened to them an unhealthy number of times. My kids would definitely say the ‘Spacetronic Lunchbox’ album; they were obsessed with that record, I found about 3 copies of the CD squirreled away under my eldest’s bed.

What can audiences expect from your upcoming sets on this tour?

Roman: My performance will be somewhere between the remixed and original versions of the ‘Underwater Supermarkets’ music – it’s a wholly unique arrangement. I’m performing solo so I had to come up with a lot of creative solutions to bring the energy and vibe to the performance, but I think it’s going to work out really well. PLUS, there will be times when I’m playing guitar and keyboard at the same time with two separate hands SOOOO… who doesn’t love to see some acrobatics?

Rodney: I hope the first reaction will be “Wow, they’ve rehearsed”! We should be a lot tighter than when we returned after the pandemic where our first show was a total mess, it doesn’t take an awful lot to read between the lines of that particular review on ELECTRICITYCLUB.CO.UK! But we’ve done a fair-few gigs since then, and by the time we played the BLANCMANGE shows, we really knew the ‘Memory Box’ material well, so fingers crossed you should get out slickest headline set yet. It’s not too much of a spoiler to say that our set is divided into three sections; dystopian nightmares, rainbow-psychedelia and 1983 disco party.

How are you finding adapting to the ever-changing social media environment? Do you get TikTok? It seems to be just full of women tugging at T-shirts to reveal themselves in bikinis or is that just my feed? Have you been able to use it for promoting your music? 😉

Rodney: I think that’s just you. I don’t do TikTok because from what I’ve seen, it’s just more vacuous nonsense. I’d rather be reading a stuffy Victorian novel than scrolling through that. I also don’t trust the CCP with my data; but in fairness I don’t trust Zuck and Musk either. If it wasn’t for promoting my music, I’d love to be one of those weirdos that don’t have any social media presence.

Roman: I’m not particularly good at keeping up and haven’t been since I first picked up the guitar at age 12. For social media I have always liked Instagram and still do; I find it’s a fun way to promote your music while being a little silly. And it feels like everyone on Instagram is hoping to see something nice and uplifting… unlike Facebook where everything you say gets you shouted at. I’m intrigued by TikTok, but it seems to work better for musicians and artists who do things a little more off the cuff. It took me 2½ months to program the 7 or 8 songs I’ll be performing live so I don’t exactly have enough content to post every day.

Is there any new material coming out soon? What are your future plans?

Roman: I’m recording my next record in a few weeks and I’m very excited for it. The amazing Shawn Lee aka YOUNG GUN SILVER FOX will be producing it and I’ve got a bunch of great people playing on it. It’s a similar instrumentation to ‘Underwater Supermarkets’ but with a much darker and minimalist vibe. There’s a pretty heavy Brazilian and polyrhythmic feel, mixed in with some AIR style synth and drum parts. My future plans are to put it out and get myself back to the UK to play some more shows!

Rodney: Various remixes will be dropping over the summer along with my next proper single called ‘Exercise Class’. It’s a light-hearted disco number about a sex pest, so I’m not sure how it will be received. If I don’t get cancelled perhaps, I’ll write another album. If I wasn’t an atheist, it would all be in the lap of the Gods.

ELECTRICITYCLUB.CO.UK gives its sincerest thanks to Adam Cresswell and Rich Bennett

Rodney Cromwell + Roman Angelos 2023 live dates:

London Servant Jazz Quarters (8th June), Reading Face Bar (9th June), Coventry Just Dropped In (10th June), Todmorden The Golden Lion (11th June) – tickets available in advance direct from https://www.happyrobots.co.uk/tickets

Recorded product is available from the Bot Shop at https://happyrobotsrecords.bandcamp.com/

https://www.happyrobots.co.uk/rodney-cromwell

https://www.facebook.com/rodneycromwellartist/

https://twitter.com/robot_rocker

https://www.instagram.com/robot_rocker/

https://www.happyrobots.co.uk/roman-angelos

https://twitter.com/acmehallrich

https://instagram.com/acmehallrich

Text and Interview by Chi Ming Lai
13th May 2023

KID MOXIE & NINA Devotion

11 May 2023 /

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

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

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

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

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

http://www.facebook.com/kidmoxie

https://twitter.com/KIDMOXIEMUSIC

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

https://www.iloveninamusic.com/

https://www.facebook.com/iloveninamusic

https://twitter.com/iloveninamusic

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

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

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

A Short Conversation with BUNNY X

6 May 2023 /

New York’s BUNNY X mined high school nostalgia for their debut long player ‘Young & In Love’ released in 2021.

Partying like it was 1986, it was a straightforward pop statement that unashamedly recalled John Hughes movies and MTV. But the duo comprising of Abigail Gordon and Mary Hanley are now sophomores and their thoughts turn to ‘Love Minus 80’.

Joining the Sci-Fi club, they have become more dystopian in their outlook as novels, films, television shows and interstellar romances take over as inspiration. Abigail Gordon chatted to ELECTRICITYCLUB.CO.UK on behalf of BUNNY X on what many artists call that difficult second album and how despite the darkness, love is still the key…

What prompted BUNNY X to conceive a Sci-Fi themed album in ‘Love Minus 80’ after the high school nostalgia of ‘Young & In Love’?

At the very early stages of the writing process for this album, we realized that we wanted to do something in stark contrast to ‘Young & In Love’ and all that the record embodied such as themes of high school nostalgia and first crushes.

We knew pretty much at the outset that we wanted our next release to be much darker and more introspective than the debut record, but we honestly didn’t realize until we had a few songs done (or mostly done) that we wanted to take things in a Sci-Fi themed direction. In fact, the first song we wrote for the album was ‘Good Love Gone Bad’ which was inspired by a Don Dellpiero song called ‘Good Deal Gone Bad’. I think I may have actually sent the early demo over to David (Don Dellpiero) but we ended up creating completely new music for it as it ended up taking on a life of its own.

‘Something To Rely On’ was written shortly after that one and it became clear we were absolutely going in a darker direction but it wasn’t until the title track ‘Love Minus 80’ started to come together that we realized this was going to mostly end up being a Sci-Fi / Futuristic themed album.

Had the real life events of the world in the past 18 months had a bearing on your mindset for ‘Love Minus 80’?

Yes and no. In honesty, ‘Young & in Love’ was more inspired by those events and was truly healing to work on during an unbelievably stressful time for all of us. Some of those tracks (like ‘Perfect Paradise’ and ‘Can’t Wait’) were 100% inspired by feelings and emotions that were present during the height of the pandemic.

I had Mary in my mind for example when I wrote the lyrics for ‘Perfect Paradise’ as we weren’t able to spend as much time with each other in those days and it was a good reminder that the simple things in life (like staying up late talking with a dear friend over a glass of wine) are the most important and what bring about true joy and peace – or paradise as it were.

As for ‘Love Minus 80’, life was beginning to fully resume when the album started to take shape and things were becoming more and more hectic after a long period of quietude. I’m sure many of us had a similar experience and went through that feeling of being pulled in a million directions all of a sudden.

I’m not sure if this ended up shaping the overall mood of the record or not, but I was definitely in a stressful place when some of the earlier songs were crafted and it’s quite possible that those emotions creeped their way onto the album.

A case in point in relation to current events could be ‘The Forever War’ and its subject matter tracing a love story between two soldiers attempting to find each other again after being separated in battle?

For better or worse, this seems to be a longstanding and ongoing theme throughout many of our releases.

The searching-for-your-long-lost-loved-one-somewhere-in-deep-space was certainly the plot in ‘Unknown Places’ (2018) and appears again on the album in what is largely a sequel track to ‘Unknown Places’, ‘The Darkest Place’. Apparently we are obsessed with vague and mysterious places haha. But yes, this same theme is ever present in ‘The Forever War’, in ‘Breaking Away (Song for Chevette & Rydell)’ and to a slightly lesser extent in the title track ‘Love Minus 80’ as well. We love ourselves a romance saga set in deep space what can we say? Ha!

While the entire record is pretty personal, ‘The Forever War’ is especially so as my dad lent me the book which ended up inspiring the song in its entirety. It’s a fascinating read by the way, the author is Joe Haldeman and I highly recommend it to anyone that’s into military science fiction as it’s quite thought provoking and is actually an anti-war book according to the author.

In any event, when I told my dad about the song idea, he got pretty excited about it and then proceeded to rewrite the lyrics which is reason #98,674 why I love him and why anyone reading this would too if they met him. He also wrote some of the lyrics on ‘Unknown Places’ so if anyone needs help with song lyrics, particularly if the theme is Sci-Fi, my dad is your guy.

‘The Darkest Place’ could be considered as a metaphor for more personal matters despite the Sci-Fi inspiration?

Absolutely. It’s essentially a song about losing someone and wanting to get them back but also about feelings of regret and even shame for having lost them (or let them go) in the first place. These are widely universal emotions and we’re always trying to tap into that as I think it’s so important to be able to relate to and see yourself in the music you’re listening to. We are all flawed and we all make bad choices sometimes. Sometimes those choices can have a lifelong impact and sometimes we never fully recover and that’s okay. It’s part of life and it’s something we all experience at one time or another.

Having worked with producer GOSTEFFECTS on ‘Young & In Love’, how was the creative dynamic this time round with that experience behind you, as ‘Love Minus 80’ does come across as being more assured?

All I have to say is: I still thank the sun, moon, stars, planets and even the exoplanets that I happened upon GOSTEFFECTS’ profile one day in a random fit of frustration I was having with being unable to get my mixes to the next level. After working with GOSTEFFECTS on the first album, I knew there was no going back and, as you alluded to, this last go round was even easier than the first since he and I have become true collaborators at this point. He’s become a bit of a mind reader in that he usually knows what I’m hoping to accomplish without me having to go into any lengthy description and just kind of understands what the brief is from the jump. I’m eternally grateful to GOSTEFFECTS for helping us bring these projects to life.

You have worked with SELLOREKT / LA DREAMS again and adapted two of his previously released instrumentals on ‘Breaking Away (Song for Chevette & Rydell)’ and ‘Chiba City Blues’?

Kevin of SLA Dreams is an absolute diamond of a person and has there ever been a more prolific artist in the synthwave genre? I honestly don’t think so as he churns out the hits like an absolute wizard again and again. It’s been awesome working with Kevin off and on over the past few years and we’re extremely grateful that he keeps having us back and even more so that he trusts us with his incredible compositions and allows us to add onto them. Aside from our collaborations with him, I’m looking forward to hearing what he’s been cooking up with Roxi Drive and Mayah Camara. The boy doesn’t sleep!

‘Something To Rely On’ is the outlier on ‘Love Minus 80’ in that it’s not Sci-Fi related, so how did it creep onto the album?

This was the second track we worked on for the album and was created before we settled on our Sci-Fi theme.

Once the rest of the tracks started to take shape and I realized it didn’t really fit in with the overarching aesthetic, I was concerned that this one wouldn’t work on the record. However, we felt that the moodiness of and driving BPM on the track fits with the overall vibe we were going for and I’m glad we included it. The song has a bit of an end of the world feeling to me, perhaps because the characters in the song have become so toxic and destructive to one another such that there’s nothing much left for them to give. Fun!

The theme of unrequited love is explored again on ‘Daydreaming’ and you used ‘Dancing On My Own’ by Robyn as the rhythmic template?

Yep. We can’t seem to help ourselves when it comes to unrequited love and themes of lost love and longing. I think it’s because it’s just such a universal feeling that we’ve all had and I think even when you’re happy, and in a good partnership, and / or a good place in your life, we can’t help but think about the roads not taken and the paths not explored. I think it’s just part of the human condition to wonder or daydream as it were about other places, lives and people and how you may (or may not) have been happy and fulfilled living those other lives. I think a lot of sci-fi readers are also kind of obsessed with parallel universes and alternate timelines and ‘Daydreaming’ is somewhat inspired by that.

I definitely wanted us to do a more upbeat, danceable track on this album since most of the songs are pretty midtempo and so what better template to use than Robyn’s iconic ‘Dancing on My Own’ and ‘Call Your Girlfriend’ era bops to accomplish that?!

The ‘Love Minus 80’ title song presents a catchy duet with THOUGHT BEINGS and uses more futuristic sounds? 

How gorgeous are Orion’s vocals on this track though? Not gonna lie, when Mary and I first heard the mix he sent, we blushed like some dang schoolgirls! Phew! I had a feeling the duet would lend the song some serious depth and power but I had no idea just how great Mary and Orion’s voices would blend together. I must have first reached out to Orion about the duet idea in mid-2022 kind of around the time we were working on our recent freestyle collabs (ie ‘Cross The Line’ and ‘Promised’) and fortunately for us, he agreed to the project right away. It took me a second to get him the final demo of memory serves and then he sent us his mix not long after that and really breathed some new life into the song.

In terms of the futuristic sounds on the track, I have to give full credit to GOSTEFFECTS for that – that was his pure genius mind at work there. We decided to add in a little sample from my favorite sci-fi movie ‘Logan’s Run’ so there’s also a little Easter egg in there for any fans of the film (I see you Marc!).

‘Good Love Gone Bad’ is perhaps icier than we are used to with regards BUNNY X?

Totally. While ‘Young & in Love’ was earnest and sweet nostalgia, this album – particularly songs like ‘Good Love Gone Bad’ and ‘Something To Rely On’ – is teeming with some much darker and heavier elements like rage and resentment and fear and loneliness. I’m not entirely sure what inspired all this but I guess looking around at the state of things here at home and elsewhere, it’s perhaps not so surprising that some of these songs came out how they did.

‘Good Love Gone Bad’ is also a frustrating Catch 22 in that even when the relationship (or “war” in this case) is over, nothing really changes as so much can remain unresolved long after an ending. It’s possible that I’m completely overanalyzing it all now with the benefit / lens of time, but so much of what we’re seeing on our screens are the same problems over and over again with no real evidence that things will improve anytime soon. I think we experience this hopelessness in our own personal relationships that have failed but we also see it play out in the news every day.

Which songs from the album are your own favourites?

They are all really dear to me and some I’ve spent more time with than others but I personally love them all for different reasons as they bring up a range of emotions.

I find myself listening to ‘Breaking Away’ fairly often because I love the dreamy vibe of it. Similarly, ‘Love Is An Empire’ also has that gauzy, hazy quality that I enjoy so I’ve been listening to that one a bunch as well.

‘Love Is An Empire’ was actually a last minute addition to the record but now that it’s an integral part of it, I can’t imagine the track not being there. It was pure joy to work with Don Dellpiero on that and have him give us his blessing to add onto his work.

What’s next for BUNNY X, there were hints of a return to Italo Disco?

We do have a few more collabs in the works that we started on some time ago so we want to see those through now that this project has wrapped.

I’m also thinking it may be high time we put out a collection of all the Italo songs we’ve released over the years so everything is in one place. I also think it would be great to get some of the older tracks remastered and perhaps include some previously unreleased Italo tracks cuz we sure do have ’em!

ELECTRICITYCLUB.CO.UK gives its warmest thanks to BUNNY X

‘Love Minus 80’ is released by Aztec Records on 26th May 2023, available as a CD, vinyl LP, cassette and download from https://bunnyx.bandcamp.com/

https://www.facebook.com/BunnyXmusic

https://twitter.com/bunnyxmusic

https://www.instagram.com/bunny_xmusic/

https://open.spotify.com/artist/1Jm30qu7cd4QfXkJSoYL6y

Text and Interview by Chi Ming Lai
6th May 2023

KNIGHT$ vs SNS SENSATION INTERVIEW

4 May 2023 /

Despite Spring seemingly not arriving in the UK, plans for the Summer and lashings of ice cream are being made by some…

KNIGHT$ returns to London for a special birthday gig after a three show Mexican stand-off opening for Los Angeles darkwave duo DRAB MAJESTY; the glitterball Britalo vehicle of James Knights, his previous support sojourns have included A FLOCK OF SEAGULLS and HEAVEN 17. Featuring ‘What’s Your Poison?’, ‘Alligator’ and ‘Gelato’, his debut full-length album ‘Dollars & Cents’ was one of those fine immediate electronic pop records, ideal for these turbulent and uncertain times.

With a ‘Boom Bang Boom!’, James Knights will be performing songs from his SCARLET SOHO and BOYTRONIC portfolio as well as new KNIGHT$ material.

There will also be a DJ set by Berlin-based Dame Bonnet while opening the evening will be a live set from SNS SENSATION; the solo moniker of Argentine-born Sebastian Muravchik, he is perhaps best known as the charismatic front man of HEARTBREAK who shared stages with THE PRESETS, LA ROUX, LITTLE BOOTS and on their return, ITALOCONNECTION and BLANCMANGE. A support slot with FIAT LUX in 2022 fired up Muravchik to perform live more as SNS SENSATION.

In a joint interview James Knights and Sebastian Muravchik chatted to ELECTRICITYCLUB.CO.UK about their first meeting, Italo Disco, the state of the modern music industry and much more.

The last time the two of you shared a stage together was in different guises in 2018 at The Moth Club for Hypnotic Tango in London when ITALOCONNECTION came over, what are your memories of that event?

James: I bumped into Sebastian at the train station before the soundcheck and we had a really nice chat on the way to the venue. That was the first time we’d met in person! I performed my song ‘Alligator’ with ITALOCONNECTION, then I was able to enjoy the rest of the night as a spectator, it was great.

Sebastian: An unforgettable night, it was fantastic. There was a unique energy in the room – the HEARTBREAK set was as if there had been no break at all! James and I met in person for the first time that day and had really good chats. Everyone was very impressed by James’ surprise performance with Fred and Paolo. I enjoy what James does on stage very much indeed and look forward to seeing a whole set at The Black Heart.

How did you become aware of each other?

James: Sebastian’s previous project HEARTBREAK was inspiring. To see people on stage pushing it to the max and challenging the audience is great. I always had the impression they didn’t give a damn what was in vogue at the time, and they would perform alongside almost any other artist, in any genre. Totally fearless and unapologetic, the way it should be!

Sebastian: It was via messages on social media. I think James was aware of some of the work I had done before I took a break from music, and we got talking. I was impressed with how involved he was with the Italo Disco world and how much influence he had taken from it in his own productions. He’s also a very nice fellow indeed, proof that you can be a great performer with no need for big egos.

So you both share this love of Italo Disco which is often unfairly maligned in the UK. Do you think there has been a renaissance as a result of documentaries like ‘Italo Disco Legacy’, ‘Dons Of Disco’ and ARTE TV’s Italo special?

Sebastian: I think the Italo scene is small but quite established now, certainly a lot more than it was when Ali Renault and I started HEARTBREAK, there was next to nothing in the UK back then. At the same time, some of us were moving in somewhat different directions, like DJ Casionova embracing Kosmische and ambient and other things, Ali’s emphasis on industrial electro, Road to Rimini generally doing less, me looking into somewhat darker territories etc.

Italo changed our lives and will always be loved by us, and still be an influence, but this artistic journey is unpredictable and you gotta go where you gotta go. And at any rate, we’ll always have Flemming Dalum 🙂

Personally, the pandemic had a huge impact on my music, and enhanced the darkness brought by Brexit and the rise of the far right, as well as my own existentialist preoccupation with death and oblivion, and the philosophical concern with living authentically through measures of poetry and abstraction.

James: I think the phenomenon is mostly down to the music itself being so good and a little bit innocent. It seems like it’s being appreciated and shared between people more and more, and for once the algorithm is working well, and serving people more hidden gems they haven’t heard yet.

What Italo Disco tracks (not necessarily your favourites) would you recommend as entry points for those who are interested because they like your music but not wholly familiar with the genre?

James: Den Harrow’s ‘Mad Desire’ in its 1984 12” version with vocals from Silver Pozzoli and not the album version (which was re-recorded by Tim Hooker), ‘Marinero’ by Lucia and also from 1985, ‘Late Night Satellite’ by BOYTRONIC…

Sebastian: Amnésie ‘Turas’, Blackway ‘New Life’, Helen ‘Witch’ and ‘Le Camion’ by DEUX (if I can get away with calling this Italo…)

What are your favourite tracks by the other?

James: I have a soft spot for SNS SENSATION’s ‘Discoboom’ because Sebastian was kind enough to submit the track for our Specchio Uomo ‘Trans-Global Excess’ compilation album. It’s massive and I love how raw it is! Then ‘Robot’s Got the Feeling’ from HEARTBREAK, because it’s amazingly dynamic with these amazing stop start rhythms.

Sebastian: ‘Miami Knights’, I love the bassline and vibe. ‘Alligator’, both the original and ITALOCONNECTION’s remix. There’s cool aggressive undertones to the singing and the energy of the productions. It’s the tune James sang with Fred and Paolo at the Moth Club, so it also left an impression that way.

What can audiences expect from your upcoming sets at The Black Heart?

Sebastian: I think having the talent that is Dame Bonnet DJ-ing on the night is a massive plus; he did a stunning remix of my ‘Your Door’ and James’ ‘Julia’, and his own stuff is excellent – as well as his bass work for CURSES. I look forward to playing some new tunes like ‘Diamond Dream’ and others, and I look forward to seeing James’s set and meeting music lovers in the audience. The fans of these kinds of music tend to be very positive people, so it should be a really fun night.

James: I’m sure there will be something, but not sure what! I was playing around with an Elton John track the other day…

Any new material or album / EP releases on the horizon?

James: Yes! I’m just wrapping up a new EP as we speak. The vinyl should be ready later this year, and I’ll be playing the lead track at the show on June 2nd!

Sebastian: I will continue to release singles for now, but I am beginning to consider an EP soon. A cassette release of some sort is definitely on the horizon.

How are you finding adapting to the ever changing music environment and the emphasis on metrics? What are your upcoming plans?

Sebastian: I love the opportunities that independent DIY artists have to release and promote their work, it’s so exciting! And there’s so much stuff released all the time that it inspires you to produce and release only your very best.

I’ve also found more of a sense of camaraderie and community via social media than ever before. At the same time, there seems to be less attention span for music that transcends or does not fall strictly within genre boundaries. ZANIAS recently tweeted about how she felt this affects her career progression. This playlist culture is discouraging for artists that remain committed to the process with no compromise; I guess the key is to keep doing what you do and not giving too much of a f*ck.

James: I’m always trying to get my head down and write as many songs as I can, whilst playing as many shows as I can. Everything else is noise in the end. I can only measure success on how I’m feeling, so if the writing and performing is going well, I’m happy.

Sebastian: My plan is to continue to release music I can be proud of, and keep developing as an artist – never stop learning and trying new things out.

ELECTRICITYCLUB.CO.UK gives its warmest thanks to James Knights and Sebastian Muravchik

KNIGHT$ + SNS SENSATION with DJ Dame Bonnet play The Black Heart, 2-3 Greenland Place,  London NW1 0AP on Friday 2nd June 2023, nearest underground Camden Town – tickets in advance from https://www.seetickets.com/event/knight-special-guests/the-black-heart/2632539

http://knights101.com/

https://www.facebook.com/Knights101/

https://twitter.com/JPSKNIGHTS

https://www.instagram.com/knights101/

https://knights101.bandcamp.com/

https://open.spotify.com/artist/07xFYhAkgObJY8VBkIy1O4

https://www.facebook.com/wearesns/

https://twitter.com/sns_wave

https://www.instagram.com/sns_discopop_noir/

https://wearesns.bandcamp.com/

https://open.spotify.com/artist/77pgZLgAxmVYtNaJm96m7P

Text and Interview by Chi Ming Lai
4th May 2023

ZANIAS Chrysalis

1 May 2023 /

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

https://twitter.com/Zanias__

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

https://www.patreon.com/zanias

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

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