Category: Reviews (Page 47 of 206)

NINA I’ll Wait

3 December 2021 /

Utilising samples from Cliff Martinez’s ‘Drive’ score, the ‘Control’ EP released at the end of 2020 was possibly Nina’s darkest work yet.

A couple of solo songs ‘Carnival Night’ and ‘Gold Heart’ have since followed but her new single ‘I’ll Wait’ is something altogether different. It is from the upcoming horror movie ‘There’s No Such Thing As Vampires’ directed by Logan Thomas.

The story sees two strangers, Joshua and Ariel, crash into each other’s cars in the dead of the night. They then find themselves pursued across the North American desert, the target of an unstoppable supernatural force!

Composed by Logan Thomas and produced by Oscillian with additional instrumentation by Greg Beaton and extra vocals from long-term collaborator Lau, ‘I’ll Wait’ begins with a sparse backdrop where Nina gives a wonderfully emotive performance over a heart murmur and sparkling understated arpeggios, before a Phil Collins style drum barrage takes hold; ‘I’ll Wait’ could be her very own ‘In The Air Tonight’ or ‘Mama’!

Nina and Logan Thomas spoke to ELECTRICITYCLUB.CO.UK about both song and film…

‘I’ll Wait’ is something of a departure, was this prompted by it be specifically for the film or where you are heading musically now? Any particular inspirations?

Nina: The film’s director, Logan Thomas wrote the original song and then asked me to sing it. I naturally made it my own and brought on one of my collaborators Oscillian to produce the final recording. Dark romanticism has always been part of my musical DNA and I am definitely embracing it more with songs like ‘I’ll Wait’ and my previous single ‘Carnival Night’.

Was there a brief or a free reign?

Logan: I was composing the synth score for the new feature film ‘There’s No Such Thing as Vampires’ and was deeply influenced by the Synthwave movement while I was directing and cutting that movie. We eventually brought in songs by FM84, Jessie Frye, Marsheaux and Nina.

But I also wanted an original love song for the film. You gotta have an original song in a movie like this! Think Annie Lennox’s song for Coppola’s ‘Dracula’! It needed that kind of longing, and I knew Nina was the perfect voice for that! Now, I had only been focusing on directing and composing since I’d moved to Los Angeles, but before that I was heavily into song writing.

So I crawled back into my studio and worked out a melody and lyric that I hoped would build in layers. Almost a hypnotic roundabout until the song reached its climax. So I recorded a demo here and sent it to England for Nina to record it for the film. They finished and sent it back to us in LA. Greg Beaton and I went back in and I added some more synths. Then Greg did some remixing and added that big, wonderful ‘In the Air Tonight’ drum track! So it was definitely a cross continental collaboration with a lot of artists.

So “what” are you waiting for?

Logan: HA!… Well, I suppose you have to see the movie to know that..

Nina: For me, it’s all about music and love. I will wait forever for romance and the song I have not yet written. I hope I never lose that feeling of endless desire.

How did the video come together as a concept?

Logan: Ah, the video… Well. So originally we (the production company) had set up everything to shoot the video here in CA. We crewed up. Had the location, and even began building Nina’s wardrobe. Nina was set to fly here and we would shoot for 2 days. It was going to be a very ‘The Hunger’ inspired music video. Big 80s glam with smokey gothic interiors. Think early Tony Scott and Russell Mulcahy. The COVID restrictions were sure to finally lift in June 2021, allowing international travel to America… and then… they didn’t.

Now we had everything in place and couldn’t get Nina here. So, gotta think pretty fast!… we set up a short session in Berlin to have Nina filmed just singing at, or past the camera. Very simple. Then, for 2 days, we took the footage of Nina and projected it all over the location that we had set in Los Angeles for the original video. Ironically, this method of “projection” ties in very nicely with it being a song for a “movie”! I just love that video. So necessity was definitely the mother of innovation there.

You are living in Berlin again, have you settled back into the groove of the city yet? Has anyone said you are speaking German in an English accent?

Nina: It’s great to be back in my home city with family and friends. I try my best to enjoy life as normal as possible (COVID restrictions). I spend most of my time in my home studio writing/producing and playing with my adorable Snow Bengal ‘Kimba’. Berlin has a unique atmosphere that I find very inspiring, so my creative process is different in a very special way. Yes, some people do notice a little twist in my accent, and I like it!


How are the other new songs coming along, what’s next, anything you can tell people about?

Nina: The new songs are coming along very well, thank you. I am taking my time with Nina Vol 3 because I am trying new things. In the meantime, I am completing collaboration projects with Kid Moxie and Radio Wolf. 2022 is going to be a very fun year for releases!

ELECTRICITYCLUB.CO.UK gives its warmest thanks to Nina and Logan Thomas

‘I’ll Wait’ is released as a digital single via Ascent Releasing

The film ‘There’s No Such Thing As Vampires’ is released on 12th December 2021 in North America and Great Britain on Video On Demand and BluRay

https://www.iloveninamusic.com/

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

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https://www.facebook.com/theresnosuchthingasvampires

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Text and Interview by Chi Ming Lai
3rd December 2021

SAMANTHA NEWARK Hologram – HYPERBUBBLE Mix

2 December 2021 /

Samantha Newark is best known for her voice-over animation work for the cult classic cartoon series ‘Jem & The Holograms’. It told the story of a record company owner Jerrica Benton and her singing alter-ego Jem’s adventures in the music industry.

Although ‘Jem & The Holograms’ ended in 1988 after three seasons, the show became one of the main influences of Texan bionic bubblepunk duo HYPERBUBBLE. The married couple of Jess and Jeff DeCuir have over a series of albums and EPs since 2004 explored instrumental synth, electro country and western, pop, cover versions and soundtracks.

But for their remix of Samantha Newark’s ‘Hologram’, it is as if an artistic circle has been completed. While ‘Hologram’ originally came out as a rock ballad with piano and guitar in 2017, HYPERBUBBLE reworked the song using just the vocal stem in their own uptempo avant disco style while complimenting her superbly rousing vocal.

Although the magenta lit lyric video could be anything from the synthwave community over the past 10 years, the digital modelling is of a very high standard and suits HYPERBUBBLE’s take on ‘Hologram’ without selling its soul to Ryan Gosling.

Having moved to Nashville and released her self-titled debut album in 2008, Samantha Newark’s new album of remixes ‘Hologram 2.0’ presents a dance music version of the original ‘Hologram’ album which began as a concept album about Jem,

A love letter to the many Jem fans, Samantha Newark said “Get ready for a non-stop dance music party that reimagines the original ‘Hologram’ album into a truly outrageous dance floor of glitter and gold extravaganza”.

‘Hologram 2.0’ is available as a CD and double pink vinyl LP from https://www.samanthanewark.com/store

https://samanthanewark.com/

https://www.facebook.com/samanthanewark

https://www.instagram.com/samanthanewarkofficial/

http://www.hyperbubble.net/

https://www.facebook.com/hyperbubble

https://www.instagram.com/hyperbubbleofficial/

Text by Chi Ming Lai
2nd December 2021

LOVE OBJECT New Flesh

1 December 2021 /

After JOON and BARK BARK DISCO from Malta along with DLINA VOLNY from Belarus, Italians Do It Better venture further east across Europe to Russia for its next long playing adventure.

Russian duo LOVE OBJECT first appeared on the 2020 compilation ‘After Dark 3’ with ‘Holodnoe Solnce’ while they also appeared on their label’s self-titled in-house collection of Madonna covers with a deadpan mechanical take on ‘Frozen’.

Now as 2021 concludes, they have their debut album ‘New Flesh’. Comprising of singer / DJ Dasha Utochka and producer Danya Mu, LOVE OBJECT are about mind and control, producing electronic noir pop with a stark dancefloor friendly backbone.

An erotic overtone lingers over LOVE OBJECT, perhaps unsurprising when it is learnt that Utochka is a co-founder of a magazine entitled ‘Areola’ whose mission statement is “To help people become more liberated and freethinking!”. With an appealing allure, opening song ‘The Kill’ explores what a funkier ‘Music For The Masses’ era DEPECHE MODE might have sounded like fronted by a robotised Russian goth girl.

Appropriately, a song actually called ‘Robot’ is more KRAFTWERK-like with a vocodered presence and a colder machine mood but the catchy electroclash of ‘Abyss’ thumps wildly as its close cousin ‘Animals’ utilises octave shifts at the bottom end to recall LADYTRON.

The doomer hip-hop vibe of ‘Virus’ is rather on point and features a harsh rap of truths that comes over apocalyptic while without raising a smile, ‘Circus’ is supercharged industrial pop but still embroiled in mystery.

‘Object of Desire’ (which was the duo’s original name in Russian) deviates rhythmically into looser stuttering techno and a deep narration from Mu before Utochka takes over. Meanwhile, ‘No Smiling’ is allowed as a sombre bass sequence that could be DAF takes hold with the enigmatic vocal akin to Miss Kittin reading Cyrillic script.

Closing with the frantic ‘Transparent Woman’, this speedy slice of tech-pop burlesque is laced with an unsettling vocal presence in a contrast of ghostly and almost sweet treated deliveries. With percolating percussive metallics, overall it musically recalls Ferry Corsten in his full SYSTEM F pomp.

Like midnight undressing, ‘New Flesh’ is sinister dance music for after dark and embroiled a twisted detachment that will appeal to those who miss the gritty synthcore hedonism led by the likes of FISCHERSPOONER and TIGA just over two decades ago.

‘New Flesh’ is released by Italians Do It Better on 3rd December 2021 via the usual online platforms

https://italiansdoitbetter.com/love-object/

https://www.facebook.com/theloveobject/

https://www.instagram.com/the.love.object/

Text by Chi Ming Lai
1st December 2021

FRAGRANCE. Salt Water

18 November 2021 /

Matthieu Roche is the enigmatic Parisian behind FRAGRANCE.

A purveyor of dreamy synthpop in the vein of PET SHOP BOYS, he released his debut EP as FRAGRANCE. in 2017 before presenting his first full length release ‘Now That I’m Real’ in 2019 on Synth Religion. From it, ‘So Typical’ was a particular highlight while there were also collaborations with Maya Postepski of AUSTRA, TR/ST and PRINCESS CENTURY fame plus Hélène de Thoury, best known for her solo project HANTE. and as a member of MINUIT MACHINE. Singing primarily in English and often leaving vocals en Français to his female collaborations, Roche exudes a classic elegance, musically recalling TR/ST but using a far less polarising singing style than that of Robert Alfons.

As a result, those who might be put off vocally by TR/ST might find FRAGRANCE. much more accessible. A modest man, Roche lets his music do the talking and with his second FRAGRANCE. album ‘Salt Water’, he continues his production partnership with Sophia Hamadi from the French duo OPALE, while a new artistic relationship comes in the shape of New York-based Venezuelan singer and photographer Lulannie.

Developing on the mood and dance template of its predecessor, ‘Salt Water’ opens with the boisterous ‘Forevermore’ where body mechanics sit within the trancey backdrop. The squelchy French house of ‘Attiré Par Le Chaos’ is suitably vibrant and hypnotic while dreamy yet danceable, the wonderful electro-disco of ‘Covered In Gold’ comes over like a Gallic PET SHOP BOYS, smoothed by Merlot and additional ethereal voices from Sophia Hamadi.

While ‘Twisted Way’ doesn’t quite hit the heights of what came before, it is enjoyable in a drifting atmospheric kind of way, but returning to something rhythmically harder, the arpeggio-laden ‘Tears’ offers a tone of resignation yet sparkles.

The energetic ‘Bind Me Up With Your Flesh’ throws in some sinister shade to the spacey club friendly vibes but with a beautiful piano intro, ‘The Cure’ eases itself in before reverberant synthbass and metronomic beats kick in to do what FRAGRANCE. do best with the alluring middle eight prose from Lulannie only adding to the pleasure.

‘Love Bites’ bubbles as Roche sings of something “dead in the water” as it rings with a number of understated electronic hooks, while the propulsive ‘Crisis’ brings a dark anxiety into proceedings although things are never too intense or doom laden, always giving hope to a possible solution. ‘A Million Replays’ ends ‘Salt Water’ with a contemplative night drive soundtrack building into a percussive coda and then ocean waves in a reflection of the album title.

Exquisite and melodic, ‘Salt Water’ utilises prominent rhythms that are never overbearing. Swathed in an absorbing melancholy for a superbly produced collection of appealing music, its ten tracks sit as comfortably at home as they do on the dancefloor, not an easy feat to pull off. Mais oui!

‘Salt Water’ is released by Synth Religion, available as a CD, baby pink or black marble transparent vinyl LP and download from https://fragrancemusic.bandcamp.com/album/salt-water

https://www.facebook.com/thisisfragrance/

https://www.instagram.com/fragrance.music/

https://linktr.ee/fragrancemusic

Text by Chi Ming Lai
Portrait Photo by Jennifer Medina, Artwork Photography by Anne-Fleur Sire
18th November 2021

KID MOXIE & MAPS Better Than Electric

9 November 2021 /

Long distance relationships are never the easiest, even at the best of times.

But the new KID MOXIE single ‘Better Than Electric’ encapsulates the melancholically longing and the ultimate joy with an arrangement like the Roy Orbison song ‘A Love So Beautiful’ (itself based on Puccini’s ‘Nessun Dorma’) reimagined for ‘Twin Peaks’ soundtrack.

Fittingly written by Elena Charbila as a remote collaboration with James Chapman of MAPS who also provides chorus harmonies, the lyrics reflect on a distance that keeps two lovers apart. Charbila said “Is there anything more powerful than Electricity? It has the power to instantly connect things and people and it is a force so powerful yet it’s something you don’t see, you only feel it.”

Directed by Joe Rubinstein and embroiled in an exquisite sexual tension, the ‘Better Than Electric’ video stars Charbila and Russian dancer Olka Sokolova. “This is a very emotionally raw and honest love song and video, about longing for someone who is far away” added Charbila, “the video, this otherworldly girl and I become one. We improvised a lot of the movement and choreography which really worked in terms of producing a very natural and real connection between us.”

“Tonight this city breathes with me, she makes me dream big” Charbila sings in a gorgeously haunting soprano, before declaring with love that “you and I, are better than electric”. After all, electricity cannot exist unless there is a connection.

Following up the previous KID MOXIE single, a cover of ALPHAVILLE’s ‘Big In Japan’ and the dance flavoured ‘Love & Unity’ EP with LUXXURY, ‘Better Than Electric’ comes from the new KID MOXIE album out in 2022.

‘Better Than Electric’ is released by Pasadena Records and available via the usual digital platforms

https://kidmoxie.bandcamp.com/

http://www.facebook.com/kidmoxie

https://twitter.com/KIDMOXIEMUSIC

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

https://thisismaps.com/

https://www.facebook.com/MapsMusic

https://twitter.com/thisismaps

https://www.instagram.com/thisismaps/

Text by Chi Ming Lai
9th November 2021

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