Browsing Tag

Indie Synth Pop

AURASHADE has made his emotionally enveloping indie synthpop debut with the single Circles

Posted on 8 July 2022

AURASHADE is the new project of singer-songwriter Timothy Hoad, who has recently moved away from his acoustic roots to embrace a more synthesised sound with grittier electric guitar tones. His debut single, Circles, more than reflects his 20 years of experience as a songwriter. You just can’t help but succumb to the evocative power as AURASHADE forces you to question your relationship with your autonomy through clever vocal effect layering over the synthy heartbeat of the single.

Clearly, on the basis of the compassionately deep lyricism, the up-and-coming artist is leading by example in terms of self-awareness. Rarely does electronica so full of soul and substance surface on the airwaves. We can’t wait to hear what follows.

AURASHADE’s debut single is now available to stream on Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Mark Earnest – Just a Dog: his beats aren’t as bad as his bite

Posted on 1 July 2022

For his latest single, Just a Dog, the Ireland-born, Tokyo-based artist Mark Earnest served a stellar slice of lush RnB pop. You can’t help but drift away with the mellow funky grooves, the soulfully resonant vocals that are pinched by melancholy instead of overarched with it, and the mellow guitar-centric rhythms.

With the bedroom artist’s greatest motivation centred on bringing catharsis and compassion, he gave his soul free reign over Just a Dog, which lyrically sees him changing species to allude to his need for simplicity. If you aren’t on board with that sentiment, have you even been alive for the past few years?!

Just a Dog will officially release on July 1st. You can check it out for yourselves by heading over to SoundCloud.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Nostalgia and neo-classic nuance drive Seven Layer Piano Cakes’ latest emotionally-charged synth-led indie single, Remy

Posted on 2 February 2022
Seven Layer Piano Cakes

From the first deep dive into the sticky-sweet indie magnetism in Seven Layer Piano Cakes’ latest synth-pop single, Remy, we were hooked. If you fused the cool edges of Interpol onto the retro bliss of Grandaddy, the sonic result still wouldn’t be as sweet.

In the infectiously ardent chorus, you’re caught up in a spacey impassioned bop-worthy feat of synth-pop. In the spaces between, you’re arrested by the cuttingly angular indie guitars that blaze around the consistently evolving synths. From playful polyphonic tones to deep grounding notes, the classically trained pianist and harmonically-blessed vocalist plays with them all in the intricate layers of his complex signature sound.

Each new release, Seven Layer Piano Cakes (Justin Hoyt), leaves us even more assured that he is one of the most exciting names to have entered the LA music scene as an independent artist in recent years. His nuanced neo-classic tendencies paired with his ability to make his music as evocative as any of the most revered ‘emo’ artists is a potent combination. With his humbly affectionate charisma, he’s almost the antithesis to every virtuoso that has existed before him. Naturally, we can’t wait to hear what comes next.

Remy will be available to stream from February 4th. It will be available to stream via YouTube, and Spotify.

Follow the artist via Instagram.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

New York’s alt-soul pioneer Leifer lets the good vibes groove next to heartbreak in his funk-laced indie synthpop single, Vacancy

Posted on 2 January 2022

It was impossible to imagine room for improvement after hearing Leifer’s standout single, Say You’re Mine, in 2021. Yet, his latest release, Vacancy, which hit the airwaves on New Year’s Eve, even caught us broadsided by the way it pulls you down with mellow tones in the intro and brings you back up fast enough to give you whiplash.

Vacancy starts by teasing serenity in the easy, hazy guitar chords before bursting into a high-vibe alt-indie pop track, complete with euphoric synths, funk riding basslines and vocals that make an earworm out of the release.

Despite the vibrant energy, Vacancy forces you to reflect on the spaces that we leave other people’s lives, while the high-energy progressions ensure that you don’t get caught up in rumination. We can only hope that Leifer starts a trend with his meaningful approach to pop. If there’s one thing that this world needs more of, it is self-awareness, and Leifer’s emotionally intelligent lyrics offer the perfect mantras to follow.

Vacancy is now available to stream on all major platforms via this link.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Hope Called in Sick has released their melancholic playlist staple, Lotus.

Posted on 29 October 2021
Hope Called in Sick

Iconic sonic palettes from the 80s and the 90s converge in Hope Called in Sick’s latest single, Lotus; the shimmering synth melodies paired with the layers of accordant shoegazey reverb made it a multi-stop nostalgia hit.

Plenty of contortions have been spun upon the 80s synth sound, but the husband and wife duo, Rob and Monica Schipul, managed to bring brand-new phantasmal energy out of it. Lotus offers a very different brand of ambience; one that reflects our modern malaise and the duo’s Jungian lens through which they see the world.

Check out the latest release from Hope Called in Sick on Bandcamp.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Partisan Way deliver polyphonic indie-pop bliss in ‘Borrow Me’.

Posted on 15 October 2021

Partisan Way started as a remote indie-pop lockdown project in 2020; on the basis of their debut album, Show Don’t Tell, we hope the UK-based outfit set its sights on plenty more than conquering more than just the digital realm.

The sweetest earworm on the album is the first single, Borrow Me. If you poured some sugar on The Vaccines, the sticky-sweet result wouldn’t be all too far away from the uplifting piano-led melodies and the even more vibrant synth lines.

While they call it like it is in the kind of toxic relationship dynamics that you can’t get enough of through the scathingly sharp-witted lyrics, the vibrant progressions successfully capture the haze that affection can leave you in.

I don’t make Mansun comparisons lightly, but Borrow Me hit the evocative spot just as well as I Can Only Disappoint You.

Borrow Me is now available to stream on Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Ism has dropped his iconic cross over single, Grey Matter.

Posted on 24 August 2021

Any fans of John Grant’s deadpan witty drawl, Daft Punk’s danceable grooves and Nile Rodger’s guitars will soon get suckered into the latest electrifying indie synthpop track, Grey Matter, by up and coming artist Ism, featuring the soulful vocals from Roo.

Grey Matter is just one of the infectiously experimental singles found on Ism’s latest album, Blue Artist, that seamlessly entwines disco, funk, hip hop, synthpop and indie – to energizing effect. It wouldn’t be a stretch to say that Grey Matter is one of the best crossover tracks since RZA and Paul Banks formed Banks & Steelz.

Grey Matter is now available to stream on Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Conner Eko has made his unmissable indie synth-pop debut with SINK

Posted on 19 August 2021

‘SINK’ is the debut indie synth-pop track from the Californian singer-songwriter Conner Eko who takes inspiration from a vast repertoire of artists to achieve his authentically affectionate sound that we’re hoping will become signature in subsequent releases. If Trent Reznor produced for Boy George, the sonic result wouldn’t be all too different from the danceably dark, ethereal textures in SINK, and we are here for it.

2021 has been rough on everyone, but Conner Eko had more to overcome than most. In March 2021, he suffered a traumatic brain injury that forced him away from this work and towards music, resulting in the release of SINK that precedes the release of his debut album, due for release in early 2022.

SINK was released on August 3rd; you can check it out for yourselves by heading over to SoundCloud.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Break free with Melo Bermon’s electropop hit, ‘REPLACEABLE’.

Posted on 30 July 2021
https://soundcloud.com/melo-bermon/replaceable/s-iKk7qN5FKg3

Texas-hailing artist Melo Bermon has released his latest electropop hit, REPLACEABLE, which puts to bed the gaslit myth that manipulators are irreplicable. Regardless of their grandiosity, they’re ten a penny. If you need any further convincing, hit play.

With a similar electrifying sonic palette to the Weeknd, Bermon’s synthy vindicating hit was made to break free too. REPLACEABLE throws back to the 80s while keeping in line with the contemporary indie synth-pop trend; with his sticky-sweet vocal sensibilities, Bermon has exactly what it takes to overtake the Midnight in the charts.

REPLACEABLE is due for release on July 23rd; you can check it out for yourselves via SoundCloud.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Hands in Shadow has released their avant-garde indie hit, Hater, Fighter…Lover?

Posted on 23 July 2021
https://m.soundcloud.com/soundboard_music/hater-fighterlover

Hands in Shadow’s latest single, Hater, Fighter…Lover? is an ingenious mash of indie post-punk, funk, grunge and avant-garde. The prelude delivers Nirvana-Esque sludgy tones before the playfully polyphonic keys allow you to imagine the aural result if the Residents and Kraftwerk produced together.

Hands in Shadow found the perfect balance between obscurity and melody, the eerie magnetic pull of the single makes you feel at a loss when the short and sweet psychedelic indie hit suddenly comes to a close. We will definitely be keeping the Yorkshire-based artist on our radar for future releases; we advise everyone with a penchant for avant-garde indie to do the same.

You can check out Hands in Shadow’s latest single for yourselves by heading over to SoundCloud.

Review by Amelia Vandergast