Category: Reviews (Page 91 of 200)

SOFTWAVE Game On

4 April 2019 /


Since their debut EP ‘Together Alone’ in 2016, Danish duo SOFTWAVE have been gaining momentum with well-received live performances and endorsements from luminaries such as one-time member of THE HUMAN LEAGUE Jo Callis and former Numan sideman Chris Payne.

From their studio in Herlev, Catrine Christensen and Jerry Olsen have not stood still, learning from their first release and actually improving on it, particularly with Jerry’s Alternate Version of the catchy ‘On & On & On’ on the companion remix EP.

And now sees the release of the couple’s debut long player with a declaration that it’s all now ‘Game On’. Cross ERASURE with the influence of singers such as Celine Dion, Tina Turner, Madonna, Gwen Stefani and Avril Lavigne, and you get the picture that while female fronted synthpop is a plenty, SOFTWAVE offer something special in the vocal department for their first album.

It’s a journey that has excited Catrine Christensen who told ELECTRICITYCLUB.CO.UK in Autumn 2017: “An album is like a story with smaller parts that connects and become that greater story. It’s small parts and emotions from your life that fits together, some being uptempo and energetic, some being slow and some sad etc.”

With a dramatic intro appropriately titled ‘Takeoff’, SOFTWAVE’s inaugural full length mission features a spoken commentary and countdown from Christensen to connect to the album’s futuristic gamer theme.

The album’s first single and calling card ‘Something Is Missing’ is buzzingly sub-ERASURE, an alluringly catchy and assured synthpop statement with melodies and counter-melodies galore.

In a tune partly inspired by her unique relationship with her dog Nero, as Christensen puts it: “life contains greater things than just temporary material things”.

More uptempo but punctuated by machines of ice, ‘No Need To Hide’ is undoubtedly Clarkean too, celebrating positivity in possibly SOFTWAVE’s finest moment yet with one of those rousing Scandipop choruses.

‘Reflected Memories’ sparkles but retains that touch of melancholy which Nordic acts are so good at. Here, Christensen is vocally rich and more confident while Olsen has upped the ante on production values since the debut, applying bravado and vibrato as appropriate.

Comparatively more sedate, ‘Guardian Angel’ plays with dripping arpeggios, airy soundscapes and the occasional Celine Dion hairbrush moment for something that Christensen declares is almost spiritual.

Rewarding their ‘Valor’, this enjoyable filmic instrumental sets the second for the second act; so with bursts of stabbing electronic energy, ‘I Need Love’ take a leaf from its Moroder-esque title, but with an effective offbeat on it rhythm construction for a love song for people who hate songs about love but who need it and feed on it.

‘Curiosity’ provides a breather and another ballad moment with Christensen displaying her range over Olsen’s sympathetic backdrop; it’s an inventive fictional story about a forgotten “one-hit-wonder” who is deep frozen in an underground laboratory, brought back to life by a fan and together they make another hit record… the concept is downright bizarre but brilliant, showing how much SOFTWAVE are thinking outside of the box.

The trancey ‘Human Beings’ is set at dancefloor pace, but Olsen’s production puts the song itself at centre stage rather than percussively overdriving it. With a commentary about how people use people and love things, rather than the other way round, the end result all the much better for it. Closing the album, the sweet ‘Galaxy Of Stars’ is classic ERASURE, pulsing and signalling gloriously as Christensen stares into the night sky reflecting on her day.

So with ‘Game On’ now “game over”, what is the verdict? SOFTWAVE have delivered a fine and enjoyable debut album with off-the-wall narratives contained within a classic melodic framework. So the natural reaction is to press “play” again.

Striving for continual artistic improvement and displaying a willingness to learn as they progress, there is no doubt that based on this documentary evidence, SOFTWAVE’s synthpop heart will go on…

‘Game On’ is released on 11th April 2019, available as a download album from https://softwave.bandcamp.com/album/game-on

http://www.softwavemusic.com/

https://www.facebook.com/SoftWaveMusic/

https://twitter.com/SoftWaveMusic

https://www.instagram.com/softwave_music/

https://softwave.bandcamp.com/

https://open.spotify.com/artist/5wo2L2BtVUYsopJnWAo8Z6

Text by Chi Ming Lai
4th April 2019

HOWARD JONES Hero In Your Eyes

3 April 2019 /


Celebrating the 35th anniversary of his debut album ‘Humans Lib’ and with a promise that he will be “bringing a lot of synths”, Howard Jones will be touring UK theatres this May.

The tour will also see the launch of his brand new album ‘Transform’, his first since 2015’s ‘Engage’ multi-media project. A practicing Buddhist for over 20 years, the album’s concept outlines “the idea that if we want to change the world for the benefit of everyone, first we have to start with ourselves.”

From it comes a sparklingly catchy new single ‘Hero In Your Eyes’ which reflects the long player’s distinctly classic feel with sequencers and feel good beats galore.

In some ways, ‘Hero In Your Eyes’ captures a similarly soulful style to the recent SOFT CELL comeback song ‘Northern Lights’. While there are aesthetic references to the past, ‘Tin Man’ is catchy synthpop for the 21st Century.

In the accompanying visual presentation, our hero is seen reminiscing on his career with archive footage projected over him; but the stars of the video undoubtedly are his Moog Prodigy, Roland TR808, Sequential Circuits Pro-One and Roland Jupiter 8, perhaps the four instruments most associated with his imperial years.

In a spirit of collaboration, ‘Transform’ includes three tracks featuring American producer and synth enthusiast BT, best known for his dance hit ‘Flaming June’ with Paul Van Dyk and producing NSYNC’s ‘Pop’. Of course, Howard Jones had his own flirtation with contemporary pop by co-writing and co-producing ‘Blue’ for SUGABABES in 2002.

The album also features the previously released 2016 Schaffel synth stomper ‘Eagle Will Fly Again’ from ‘Fly’, the various artists soundtrack souvenir of the ‘Eddie The Eagle’ biopic and the excellent taster single ‘Beating Mr Neg’, a rallying cry against negativity.

Despite being just a year short of receiving his bus pass, Howard Jones retains his positive zest for life to inspire creativity, something that has ensured him a loyal following for three and a half decades.

With grateful thanks to Asher Alexander at Republic Media

‘Transform’ is released on 10th May 2019 by Dtox Records as a deluxe 2CD with book, standard CD, vinyl LP and download, pre-order from https://www.musicglue.com/howard-jones/

Howard Jones 2019 35th Anniversary ‘Transform’ tour with special guests CHINA CRISIS includes:

Birmingham Symphony Hall (23rd May), Southend Cliffs Pavilion (24th May), London Palladium (25th May), Cardiff St David’s Hall (26th May), Leicester De Montfort Hall (29th May), Manchester Bridgewater Hall (30th May), Edinburgh Queens Hall (31st May), Gateshead Sage (1st June)

http://www.howardjones.com/

https://www.facebook.com/howardjones

https://twitter.com/howardjones

https://www.instagram.com/thehoward_jones/

Text by Chi Ming Lai
Photos by Simon Fowler
3rd April 2019

FUTURECOP! Voltrana

25 March 2019 /

Mancunian producer Manzur Iqbal is the man behind FUTURECOP!

Since 2006, the project has grown in popularity, having gained audiences across the globe, sitting comfortably in the niche of synthwave and synth revival circles.

Iqbal, despite having had no previous musical experience, started experimenting with sound to bring back the charm of his youth and FUTURECOP! was born. Known for his collaborations, FUTURECOP! is back with his brand new album ‘Voltrana’, where more synthwave household names are present.

From ambient to spiritual, the album is full of surprises, all cinematically realigned to achieve a shiny retro gem which is bound to bring in the long awaited Spring.

Canada’s PARALLELS delight the album with Holly Dodson’s charming vocals and this opus welcomes back the synthwave princess copiously, starting with the sweet notions of ‘We Belong’. With a thoroughly modern approach interwoven with retro beats and scrumptious arpeggios, the track is a perfect intro to the colourful world of ‘Voltrana’.

Canada is followed the US with the clever changes of texture on ‘Star’, which welcomes COMPUTER MAGIC. New Yorker Danielle Johnson, the sole brains behind COMPUTER MAGIC has made it “big in Japan” thanks to her ethereal approach to vintage pop, often described as “cosmic”. And here, with FUTURECOP! she enters the realms of the otherworldly once again.

PARALLELS chase back again with the delicious ‘Leslie Cheung’, a tribute to the late much loved Cantopop star and actor. Dodson’s candied vocals bring an aura of childhood reminiscence over sugar coated melodies created as a fine example of modern dance music.

Going East, will Iqbal succeed in ‘Finding Shaolin’? Seemingly so, accompanied by heavier synth arpeggios and Moroder-esque templates, while ‘Breeze (Behind Waterfalls)’ eases the journey with the drum extravaganza leading the way further into the unknown.

PARALLELS return with the previously released single ‘Edge Of The Universe’.

“Inspired by a mix of 80s Japanese pop culture, eighties American Teen movies and Retro Space Adventure Japanese-Western cartoons” as described by Iqbal, the track is yet another easy listening beauty, inspiring peace and hope all the way “at the edge of the universe”.

Going back to the tender years of youth, ‘Forgotten Summer’ brings back the sounds and smells of the pivotal formative era, while Ayumi Sasaki joins FUTURECOP! on ‘Shinjinmei’; ‘信心銘’ is a sweet acoustic flavoured ballad, filled with nostalgic emotion that weaves in and out of J-Pop awareness.

Continuing the nod to eastern cultures ‘Zen 4040’, ‘Whispers of Tao’ and ‘Only From Mud (Can A Flower Bloom)’ enter the higher consciousness of pictorial qualities.

PARALLELS feature one more time on the delightful ‘This Moment Forever’, before the German princess of pop NINA finds herself as one of the family on ‘Fade Away’.

Grandiose arpeggios, “perfectly planned”, canvas the fresh sounding vocals from the alluring London-based songstress.

Comfortably at home alongside PARALLELS with whom she toured the US last year, NINA brings a calmer quality into the mix, not too dissimilar from the “mellow Magic” on Magic Radio.

The final collaboration comes from SIAMESE YOUTH, a synthwave duo from Berlin, also in form of a more demure offering, calming the senses and smoothing the rough with delicate melodies and soothing vocals.

The return of FUTURECOP! is a grand one. Twinning with the cream of synthwave artists from around the globe, this Eastern-inspired proposition helps to bring back the days of youth with charm, poise and melancholy.

Not all happy go lucky, yet uplifting and hopeful, ‘Voltrana’ is the perfect easy listening positive affirmation. Namaste.

‘Voltrana’ is released by New Retro Wave Records as a download album, available from https://newretrowave.bandcamp.com/album/voltrana

https://www.futurecop.info/

https://facebook.com/futurecopofficial/

https://twitter.com/futurecopx

https://www.instagram.com/futurecopofficial/

Text by Monika Izabela Trigwell
25th March 2019

KARIN MY Time To Go + Voices In The Wall

24 March 2019 /

Rusty Egan is forever going on about “young synths”, but artists just need to be good, which brings us to the Swedish songstress Karin My.

Following hot on the heels of ‘The Silence’ which was the first truly great song of 2019, ‘Time To Go’ is another marvellous melancholic slice of Svenska synth with melodic points of access in the tradition of ABBA, dressed with sparkling electronics and featuring an eerie middle eight vocal ad-lib.

Continuing the harrowing story previously told in ‘The Silence’, the sad visual accompaniment for ‘Time To Go’ is again hauntingly directed by Millfield. Reflecting the trauma of personal loss and bereavement, the video is appended by a largely acoustic rework of ‘Voices In The Wall’ by electro-goth combo NEMO who Karin My was lead singer for and had herself initially released as a solo single in 2008.

In this version, she comes over like a Nordic Mary Hopkin, the one-time Mrs Tony Visconti who did backing vocals for Bowie’s ‘Sound & Vision’ and whose hit ‘Goodbye’ written by Paul McCartney was covered in fine synthpop style by fellow Swede COMPUTE.

An experienced self-taught musician, Karin My has largely remained in the background throughout most of her career, having provided backing vocals on three tracks for TWICE A MAN’s 2015 album ‘Presence’ and contributed to two covers on Cold War Night Life’s ‘Heresy: A Tribute To RATIONAL YOUTH’ compilation in 2016.

With her honest spirit in her traditionally derived songs, her synth driven inclinations coming from a love of LUSTANS LAKEJER, DEPECHE MODE, RATIONAL YOUTH, MESH and KITE exude a quality in modern electronic pop music that touches the heartstrings like Norway’s Susanne Sundfør.

There is more to come in 2019 from Karin My and ELECTRICITYCLUB.CO.UK cannot wait.

‘Time To Go’ b/w ‘Voices In My Head (2019)’ is available on most digital platforms via Ad Inexplorata

http://www.karinmy.net/

https://www.instagram.com/karinmymusic/

http://www.explorata.net/

https://www.facebook.com/Ad-Inexplorata-361838160540139/

Text by Chi Ming Lai
24th March 2019

ANNA ÖBERG Vafan Har Jag Gjort!

16 March 2019 /

The Swedish band LADOMIR, who described themselves as “synth and string”, was the jump start for Anna Öberg, who had long been a stand-alone composer and lyricist.

A self-confessed lover of pop, Öberg decided to take the plunge into the ocean of electronica, releasing ‘Härsknar’ as her first solo long player.

This amalgamation of new wave, punk and heavy industrial elements was produced by Charles Storm, known for his collaborations with HÅKAN HELLSTRÖM.

This year sees Öberg’s return with a follow-up, ‘Vafan Har Jag Gjort!’, which sweetly translates as “What the f*ck have I done!”

So, Anna, what the f*ck have you done!?

Promising “further steps into her very personal synth universe and masterful craftsmanship”, Öberg claims that this time she’s pushing “a little harder”, but at the same time “a little more sweet”.

Indeed, the harder pushing, nearly psychedelic sound LSD induced and with rave qualities, introduces the album with ‘Jag Blir Inte Kysst’ (‘I Don’t Get Kissed’), where the artist goes all out with pitch changing vocal, gritty synth and dirty textures, that attack from the onset.

The question of today is ‘Vafan Har Jag Gjort!’, which is repeated several times in the course of the song, pushing further and further like uncomfortable probe, to ease off for seconds before the machine starts up again. From the clear protest song, to this of arm swaying quality, the regretful plea ebbs and flows until it disappears into the abyss of Öberg’s disturbed mind.

‘Daga Att Gråta’ sees a more demure approach with sluggish rhythm, slower beat and poetic verses, interwoven with heavier elements to complete a more uncertain track, full of Pagan imaginary and artistry.

Vintage synth a la FAD GADGET’s ‘Ricky’s Hand’ ushers ‘Jag Såg Dig På En Lördag’ where that Saturday feeling drives the fast paced beats, continuously paying homage to the analogue machinery, showing off the fact Öberg can do “the happy” as well as the harsh and sad.

The unusual returns on ‘Bråk’, which is “fraction” like GAZELLE TWIN meets BJÖRK. The main musical elements are a choir, sparse synth and echoed voices. ‘Ich Bin’ changes the tongue to German and Öberg warns in no uncertain terms the she needs love: “Achtung Achtung Ich brauche Liebe”, over possibly the most interesting musical manipulation on the production.

A PET SHOP BOYS like dance sound enters on ‘Fortfarande 16’. The clash of voices and sounds bursts out like Jack in a Box, paying further homage to synth of the past times, while the closing ‘Omöjligt’ wraps up the album with the strangest of tunes. Dark, smoky and spooky, this persuasive piece evokes uncertainty and fear, with very few sounds, which develop into a plethora of sci-fi light and truly “impossible” imaginary.

Nobody said this was easy listening music, nobody warned against harsh words, nobody prepared against heavy statements, but Anna Öberg cares not. Having Charles Storm taking the reins of production again, as well as the inclusion of the poet Bob Hansson, John Lindqwister and Russ Rydén, Öberg achieves higher levels of musical wisdom, thanks to her ever expanding electronic horizons.

‘Vafan Har Jag Gjort!’ is released by Xenophone International as a CD and vinyl LP, download available from https://annaberg.bandcamp.com/releases

https://www.facebook.com/Anna5Oberg/

Text by Monika Izabela Trigwell
16th March 2019

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